NEW DELHI: There is a dispute between Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin over the ongoing Mekedatu project in Karnataka. Stalin has appealed to Yediyurappa to stop the project. Meanwhile, Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said Tamil Nadu has been fighting for a long time over the mainstream of Cauvery and its minor stream. The order of the Tribunal and the Cauvery Board is very clear, in Mekedatu we have started the construction of the boundary. If anything sinks, it will sink in our land.

The Home Minister said that we are not stopping any water project in Tamil Nadu, these people had gone to the Supreme Court for more water. Now the new government of Tamil Nadu is doing politics on this matter. We will fight a legal battle against it. Both the states will benefit from the Mekedatu project. We will get drinking water. Whenever there is less rain in Tamil Nadu, we will collect the water here. Water will not be collected anywhere except Krishna Raj Sagar. These people had opposed it in the Supreme Court, our lawyers are looking into it.

Yediyurappa wrote a letter to support the project It is worth noting that Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa had written a letter to Stalin urging him not to oppose this project. He had offered a bilateral meeting so that all issues could be discussed and resolved. But Stalin has refused to support the project. He says that due to this project the people of Tamil Nadu will have to face the problem of water.

What is Mekedatu Project?

This project is being set up on river Kaveri, which is near Mekedatu in Ramanagaram district of Tamil Nadu. 48 million cubic water will be collected through this project. A dam will be built for this. Through which water will be collected in the large reservoir and it will be used to supply drinking water and recharge ground water in Bengaluru. What is the dispute The Tamil Nadu government says that this project is against the final decision of the River Water Authority. This project will collect water in Krishnaraja Sagar and Kabini reservoir, which will affect the flow of water in Tamil Nadu. On the other hand, Karnataka says that this project will not obstruct the pre-determined amount of water that is going, it will be used for irrigation. There was a lot of protest in 2015 against this project.

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I am the multimedia producer for News Indian Live, based in Hong Kong. Previously, I worked as an associate producer at Indian News Live for about two years, after graduating with a degree in journalism from Karnataka University.