The Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) has directed the Karnataka government to release 31.24 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu for the month of July.
The decision was taken during a CWMA meeting held in hybrid mode and chaired by S.K. Haidar. Tamil Nadu officials, including Water Resources Department Secretary J. Jayakanthan, insisted on the release based on Supreme Court guidelines and the Indian Meteorological Department’s forecast of a slightly above-normal southwest monsoon.
Officials noted that Karnataka has received good rainfall and its reservoirs have healthy storage. As of June 25, Tamil Nadu’s Mettur Dam had 84.22 TMC of water. The state has already started releasing water for delta irrigation at a rate of over 21,000 cusecs per day.
The CWMA clarified that Karnataka must release the water at the Biligundlu point, the inter-state border. Tamil Nadu is set to begin full-scale irrigation from July 12, and officials stressed that timely water release is crucial for farmers.
Earlier in May, the CWMA had also ordered Karnataka to release 9.19 TMC of water for June. This latest directive continues efforts to ensure fair water sharing between the two states.