With nearly 30 tmcft water from the June and July quota yet to be released, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in getting Karnataka to release Cauvery water to the state to save the kuruvai (short-term) crop which has been cultivated in about 5 lakh acres.
In a letter, Stalin drew Modi’s attention to the “grim scenario” faced by the farmers in the Cauvery delta and asked him to save their kuruvai paddy crop by instructing Karnataka to release Tamil Nadu’s due share of Cauvery water.
Unlike other parts of India, Tamil Nadu, particularly the Cauvery delta, receives very less rainfall during the Southwest monsoon, Stalin said in the letter and added that the cultivation of kuruvai and sowing of samba paddy crops are entirely dependent on release of water from Mettur Reservoir, which relies on the flow from Karnataka.
Karnataka has released only 11.6 tmcft as against 40.4 tmcft due at Billigundulu from June 1 to July 31. “Such a huge shortfall of 28.8 tmcft has been thrust on Tamil Nadu, even while Karnataka has a gross storage of 91 tmcft in its four major reservoirs, against their full storage capacity of 114.6 tmcft,” the Chief Minister pointed out.
The storage position in the Stanley Reservoir at Mettur has only 26.6 tmcft as on August 2, 2023. After provisioning for drinking water and other essential needs, the available water can support the standing kuruvai crop for only 15 days more, whereas the crops need water for another 45 days for maturity and optimum yield.
Stalin also recalled that he wrote two letters – July 5 and July 19 – to Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat urging him to advise Karnataka to adhere to the schedule of delivery fixed by the Supreme Court and to instruct the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to monitor the same.
“However, Karnataka has not relented and except for the runoff from the fully filled Kabini reservoir, no water has been released from its major reservoirs which are 80 per cent full and continue to receive good inflows,” Stalin complained.
The Cauvery delta is the rice bowl of Tamil Nadu and it meets the paddy requirement of the state to a very large extent and at a time the Union Government has banned the export of non-basmati rice due to emerging concerns of rice shortage, it is all the more important that the current kuruvai crop in Cauvery delta and the livelihood of that farmers are saved.
“I, therefore, urge you to advise Karnataka to immediately release the water due to us as per the schedule and to clear the shortfall in June and July. I also request you to instruct the Ministry of Jal Shakthi to take appropriate action for ensuring the same,” Stalin added.