Karnataka says in SC it doesn’t have water to share with Tamil Nadu till Jan

NEW DELHI: The Karnataka government on Monday asked the Supreme Court to modify a previous order on releasing 6,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu, stating that it was facing “an acute situation of distress” due to insufficient rainfall.

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It said the combined water storage in the state’s four reservoirs – Krishna Raja Sagara, Hemavathy, Harangi and Kabini– has depleted to alarming levels.

On September 20, the apex court had directed Karnataka to release 6,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu every day till September 27. However, Karnataka – in its fresh application – sought to defer the release of water until the end of the season in January 2017.

“It is respect fully submitted that in a year of insufficient rainfall and distress, the state is nonetheless obliged to reserve for supply to inhabitants water at national standards norms…” the application said.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu also filed an application before the Supreme Court, asking the bench to refrain from hearing Karnataka’s petition until it has complied with the September 20 direction.

The decades-old river water dispute engulfed the two southern states over the past month, triggering largescale violence in Bengaluru.