BS Yediyurappa requests Tamil Nadu CM not to oppose Mekedatu project

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has written to his Tamil Nadu counterpart MK Stalin requesting him not to oppose the Mekedatu balancing reservoir-cum-drinking water project and offered a bilateral meeting between the two states to clear all apprehensions. Making a fresh bid to resolve the issue around the Mekedatu project, which has been pending for many years, Yediyurappa said the project would immensely benefit both the states and in no way affect the interests of the farming communities of Tamil Nadu.

He wrote, "It would be in the interest of all concerned and to have a better relationship between the state of Karnataka and state of Tamil Nadu, if the Tamil Nadu government in the right spirit would not oppose the implementation of the project." "In order to address issues, if any, it is suggested that a bilateral meeting could also be held in the presence of concerned officials to clear all apprehensions," Yediyurappa wrote in his missive to Stalin seeking his cooperation and strengthened relations between the two states.

The Chief Minister reminded Stalin that the water project has been contemplated with an objective to regulate the flow of water to Tamil Nadu as stipulated in the final orders of Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) and thereafter modified by the Supreme Court to generate 400 MegaWatt of power. The project also aimed to additionally utilise 4.75 TMC of water for meeting drinking and domestic water needs of Karnataka including the whole of Bengaluru, "as awarded by the Supreme Court in its judgment dated February 16, 2018".

While Tamil Nadu has filed a Miscellaneous Application before the apex court against the project, Karnataka has sought approval from the Centre for Terms of Reference (CTR) to conduct Environmental Impact Assessment Studies (EIAS), Yediyurappa pointed out. The Chief Minister reminded Stalin of various projects planned by Tamil Nadu including two hydropower projects, Sillahalla project and several projects on the main river below Mettur.

"The government of Tamil Nadu has neither entered into any kind of negotiations nor secured consent from the Government of Karnataka for the above projects in Cauvery basin," Yediyurappa said.

Tamil Nadu has been opposed to the project on the grounds that it will lead to a reduction in the quantum of water from Cauvery to the state awarded by the apex court and that it was against its farmers.

Reiterating his government's opposition to the project, Stalin had said last month that it was inimical to the interests of Tamil Nadu's farmers.