CM Yediyurappa directs officials to prepare Mekedatu project action plan
(Sourced from PTI)
Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has directed officials to prepare the action plan for the Mekedatu project at the earliest, which is vital for the state, said the state's Home, Law, and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Basavaraj Bommai. "This weekend Yediyurappa will hold a meeting with legal experts and technical experts on preparing the action plan for the project," Bommai told reporters in Bengaluru Wednesday.
"There is only a miscellaneous application pending in the Supreme Court with regard to...Mekedatu scheme," Bommai said, adding Yediyurappa will convene a meeting this weekend where discussions with legal experts about necessary approvals and further steps will be held. He said the project will play a key role in Cauvery water management and be a parallel dam to supply water during a water crisis.
Mekedatu project has become a bone of contention between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, which often flag the issue of Cauvery water sharing during a shortage in rainfall in the catchment areas of the river that originates in Karnataka's Kodagu district and courses through Tamil Nadu.
According to The News Minute, on Tuesday, Yediyurappa reportedly asserted that Karnataka will implement the Mekedatu project across the Cauvery river. He said, "Things are favorable for us in this regard, there is no question of halting it for any reason. We will implement the Mekedatu project within the legal framework and complete it, no one can stop it."
Moreover, Yediyurappa, on Saturday wrote to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin to urge him not to oppose the project as it will benefit both states. He also offered to hold a bilateral meeting for adressing any issues, as reported by The News Minute.
In response, however, Stalin requested Yediyurappa not to pursue the project, saying it would "impound and divert" the uncontrolled water flow due to Tamil Nadu from Kabini sub-basin, the catchment area below Krishnarajasagar Dam, and also from Simsha, Arkavathy, and Suvarnavathi sub-basins, besides other small streams. The News Minute reported Stalin also dismissed Karnataka's stand that the project would not affect Tamil Nadu's farmers.
On Tuesday, after meeting the Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Tamil Nadu's Water Resources Minister, S Duraimurugan, told reporters that the Mekedatu project would not begin without the consensus of Tamil Nadu. He also said that a tribunal will be constituted to investigate the dam across the Markandeya river, which would cause misery to Tamil Nadu farmers.
The Mekedatu project is a multipurpose project at an estimated cost of Rs. 9,000 crore, which aims at building a balancing reservoir near Kanakpura of Ramanagara district. Once completed the project will ensure drinking water in Bengaluru and neighboring areas, according to The News Minute.
