Despite the severe water shortage in Karnataka, the State Government is bound to respect court orders within the framework of the federal system, he added.
However, he claimed that the quantum of water released to Tamil Nadu this time is the lowest in the last 20 years. In the past, during similarly difficult situations, the State had released as much as 35 tmc of water, he said.
The government, Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy said, remains committed to protecting farmers’ interests even as the legal team presents its arguments in court.
At present, water is being supplied to farmers’ standing crops under the rotational irrigation system while efforts are also underway to fill lakes and tanks. The Minister assured that sufficient water would be reserved in the four major reservoirs of the Cauvery basin to ensure there is no shortage of drinking water for people between December and June.
Making it clear that the government does not wish to engage in political mudslinging with the opposition over the Cauvery issue, Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy said a permanent solution to the State’s water woes would be found if BJP MPs and Union Ministers from Karnataka lobbied with the Centre to undertaken in Karnataka, Mr. Cheluvarayaswamy said the initial phase had not yielded the desired results, but added that favourable weather conditions after the Gowri-Ganesha festival are expected to produce better outcomes.
Reacting to recent developments in Belagavi, he said raids by the Income Tax Department and the Enforcement Directorate have become common in Congress-ruled States as elections approach.
With Public Works Minister , adding that pro-people programmes and celebrations would increase across Karnataka over the next year-and-a-half.
