Supreme Court flags possible excess Cauvery water received by Tamil Nadu

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday observed that the State of Tamil Nadu appeared to be receiving more water from the Cauvery River in Karnataka than its allocated share.

A division bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta made the observation while hearing the Tamil Nadu government's plea seeking directions for immediate release of its due share of Cauvery water.

The Tamil Nadu government has alleged that it is not receiving its allocated share from Karnataka despite facing a rain-deficient year.


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However, the Bench remarked on Monday that the Karnataka government had earlier released much more water. "..if you add the total, you (TN) already have more than that", the Bench orally remarked.

The Bench asked the Karnataka government to continue complying with the directions issued by the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) for release of water to Tamil Nadu.

As per the Tamil Nadu government, the quantity recommended for release by the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) and the actual volume supplied by Karnataka both fall far short of its requirements. The counsel for the State submitted that the state could not supply any water for irrigation. In response, the counsel for the Karnataka government submitted that there was an enormous deficit of water in the Cauvery.

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Taking stock of the submissions, the Bench adjourned the matter to next week to examine the status of water sharing between the States.