Kiran Bedi writes to PM; seeks CMB

Puducherry Lt Governor Kiran Bedi on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding expedition of the process of setting up of a Cauvery Management Board to ensure that the Union Territory's rights are protected.

She said the filing of the clarification petition by the Union Government seeking extension of time for constituting the CMB has created "anxiety and unrest" among the farming community of the Union Territory.

"I had given approval to the Union Territory administration to file an interlocutory petition before the Hon'ble Supreme Court to expedite the process of constitution of these bodies so as to ensure the livelihood of hapless farmers of the Karaikal region of the Union Territory of Puducherry," she said in the letter.

Puducherry was allotted 7 tmcft of water from Cauvery by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal and the Supreme Court left it unchanged in its recent order.

Farmers in Karaikal region depend on Cauvery water.