Cauvery water row: Pro-Kannada outfits call for 'bandh' in Mandya today

Pro-Kannada outfits and farmer organisations in Karnataka's Mandya have called for a 'Bandh' on Saturday to protest against the order of Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) for asking Karnataka government to release 5000 cusecs of water to neighbouring Tamil Nadu for 15 days.

It is pertinent to note that the strike called by activists and farmers came after the Supreme Court on Thursday refused to interfere with the order of the Cauvery Water Management Authority.

Meanwhile, the state police have beefed up the security arrangements in the area to handle any inappropriate situation that may arise due to the strike.

Visuals showed the pro-Kannada outfits and farmer organisations staging protests, forming a human chain, and demonstrating on the streets, raising slogans.

Maddur and Taluq Centre will reportedly stay closed, and it is expected that due to the strike, the buses will also not operate. Shops and businesses will reportedly remain closed, and only essential services, including milk, medicine, and hospitals, will remain open.

Farmers across Karnataka have been protesting since the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) ordered the state to release 5000 cusecs of water to its neighbouring state Tamil Nadu, for 15 days, effective from September 13.

Earlier on Friday, amid the Cauvery water-sharing row with Tamil Nadu, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that the government will safeguard the interests of the farmers of the state.

Shivakumar also said that during the meeting held in the national capital on Friday, the Cabinet meeting decided to follow the court order regarding the Cauvery water distribution.

A bench of Justices BR Gavai, PS Narasimha and Prashant Kumar Mishra while refusing to interfere in the Cauvery water dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu said both CWMA and Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) are regularly meeting and monitoring the water requirements every 15 days.

It said the apex court was not inclined to interfere with the order passed on this aspect by the authority, since the authority and committee were meeting and monitoring the situation every 15 days.

It declined to entertain an application filed by the Tamil Nadu government to increase its current share of Cauvery water from 5,000 to 7,200 cusecs per day.

Tamil Nadu has sought fresh directions for the release of Cauvery river water from Karnataka, claiming that the neighbouring State had changed its stand, and had released a reduced quantum of water as against what was agreed upon earlier.

The Karnataka government on September 20 filed an application before the top court seeking a direction to the CWMA to reconsider its September 18 decision to ensure a flow of 5,000 cusecs of river water to Tamil Nadu till September 29.

The matter has been a controversial issue between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for decades and they have been locked in battle over the sharing of water from the Cauvery river, which is a major source of irrigation and drinking water for millions of people in the region.

The Centre formed the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on June 2, 1990, to adjudicate disputes between Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Puducherry with respect to the water-sharing capacities.