Karnataka not bother about Cauveri;

Karnataka not bother about Cauveri;

தமிழகத்திற்கு தொடர்ந்து  தண்ணீர் தர மறுக்கும் கர்நாடாகாவை தண்ணீரே தண்டித்தது ..

# துயரம் .Water, water, every where,

And all the boards did shrink;

Water, water, every where,

Nor any drop to drink.

....................Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

The poet wrote this during 1797-98, seems very relevant today for Karnataka. 

The image I have posted is of the River Basin of Karnataka. If you see the image, Karnataka ideally should have no water problem, but Karnataka faced the worst water shortage this summer and this issue is hitting the roof.

The river in crisis is River Mahadayi. Mahadayi originates from a cluster of 30 springs at Bhimgad in the Western Ghats of Belgaum district. The river has a length of 77 km, 29 km in Karnataka and 52 km in Goa. The river has a 2,032 kms catchment area in Karnataka and a 1,580 kms catchment area in Goa.

With its cerulean waters, Dudhsagar Falls and Varapoha Falls, it is also known as the Gomati in a few places. Mahadayi becomes Mandovi as it enters the state of Goa, connecting north and south parts of the state and finally flows into the Arabian Sea.

There are 17 rain gauge stations in and around the basin. The stations inside Karnataka are Supa, Khanapur, Kankumbi, Jamagaon, Amgaon and Castlerock. In Maharashtra there is one at Tilariwadi, whereas Goa has stations at Panaji, Sanguem, Margao, Quepem, Mapusa, Bicholim, Valpoi, Ponda, Colem and Marmugao. 

Malaprabha river is about 47 kms from River Mahadayi, cutting across the Western Ghats.  

As Malaprabha is the only river with no catchment, the river basin was virtually dry the entire summer and the people of North Karnataka bore the brunt of an empty water bed. 

But……This is not a new story. The problem has been persistent for a long time now. 

Hence, the Kalasa-Banduri Nala Project was undertaken by the Government of Karnataka to improve drinking water supply to the Districts of Belagavi, Dharwad and Gadag. It involves building across Kalasa and Banduri, two tributaries of the Mahadayi river to divert 7.56 TMC of water to the Malaprabha river, which supplies the drinking water needs to these districts.  This project had been on paper for decades and the Karnataka government decided to implement it during S M Krishna's regime. Clearance for the project was received from the center in 2002. The project however, soon ran into trouble when the then CM of Goa raised objections to the project claiming that the project would harm Goa's flora and fauna. Following this, the then government which was in power at the center, put on hold, its approval and funding of the project. At Karnataka’s end, the fight by many groups is on for a long time now, but without any outcome. While the need to supply water to North Karnataka is definitely the idea, some groups are also against the Govt for going ahead with this project, as this involves destruction of the Western ghats. The ecology of #Mahadayibasin is already very fragile on account of massive deforestation and quarrying . The basin falls in the Western Ghats and much of the biodiversity will be at peril.

Dispute..

Karnataka is demanding that 7.5 tmc of water be diverted to River Malaprabha from the initial flow so that the parched districts are fed with drinking water. But Goa has not agreed. Now the tribunal’s verdict is against the benefit of the state.. you can expect unrest. Be prepared.

I always kept wondering, even during the Cauvery crisis, why should Karnataka need anyone’s permission to use its own water the way it wanted? While Google will give answers in the form of National Water Tribunal, the fact remains that its our water and our necessity.  There is a distant dream project called National Water Grid, that was conceived by our own Sir. M. Vishweshwaraiah, a 100 years ago, which is being revisited now, but this project is far too long and far too ambitious. 

Furious uproar against the verdict in the form of Hartal, Bandh and agitation of sorts are well underway, but these things are also so politically driven that you don’t know how things might pan. Until then, quiet flows the river to join the deep blue Arabian sea. But Karnataka not bother about Cauveri.