Chennai: Tamilnadu government was given a four-week time today to respond to the petitions of both Centre and Karnataka government by the Supreme Court in the Mekedatu dam case.
An affidavit filed before the Supreme Court by the Secretary to the Ministry of Water Resources, Ananda Chandra, said, “The conditional clearance granted for preparation of the DPR was subject to the project authority (Karnataka) resolving inter-state matters amicably by due consultation with co-basin States of Cauvery basin. Also, acceptance of CWMA would be a prerequisite for consideration of the DPR for techno-economic approval by the Advisory Committee of the ministry.”
Tamilnadu has been vigorously opposing the project and the CWC’s decision to grant permission for Karnataka to prepare the DPR. The State government said the project was in utter disregard to the adjudication rendered by the Supreme Court.
“The attempt of Karnataka is to increase its storage capacity and enhance its irrigation, which would be in gross violation of the decision of the tribunal as modified by the court, besides seriously jeopardising the rights of the inhabitants of Tamilnadu,” the government said in its petition before the apex court previously.