Chennai, July 29:
Karnataka Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy said the state will decide whether to challenge the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee’s (CWRC) directive to release 3,500 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu for 15 days, citing concerns over dwindling reservoir levels.
Reddy said a final decision would be taken after consultations with Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, adding that the state could file an appeal before the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA).
Responding to estimates that the release would amount to nearly 6 TMC, the minister clarified that it would be closer to 4 TMC. He stressed that Karnataka’s immediate concern is water availability, particularly as the southwest monsoon has not yet brought sufficient inflows.
“We are facing a shortage of water. If it does not rain within the next 15 days, the situation will worsen. If it rains, we will get some relief,” Reddy said.
He noted that the Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) reservoir currently holds only about 8 TMC of live storage, excluding dead storage.