Supreme Court Adjourns Cauvery Water Sharing Hearing (Img: X)
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday postponed the hearing on petitions related to the long-running Cauvery water-sharing dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was hearing Tamil Nadu’s plea seeking implementation of the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) decision directing the release of Cauvery water.
Tamil Nadu had moved the Supreme Court requesting directions to ensure compliance with the CWMA order on the release of Cauvery water.
The dispute relates to the sharing of Cauvery river water between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, a decades-old issue that has repeatedly triggered political and legal battles between the two states.
During Monday’s proceedings, the Supreme Court deferred the matter and said it would be taken up again next week.
The next hearing is expected to bring further arguments from both sides regarding the implementation of the water-sharing authority’s decision.
The Cauvery water dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu has a long history, with its roots going back to agreements signed during the British era.
The conflict began with two key agreements in 1892 and 1924 between the erstwhile Madras Presidency and the Princely State of Mysore over the sharing and use of Cauvery river water.
After years of disagreements and unsuccessful negotiations between the two states, the Supreme Court directed the formation of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal.
The tribunal delivered its final award in 2007, determining the water-sharing arrangement between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The decision allowed Tamil Nadu to receive a fixed quantity of Cauvery water every day.
However, the dispute did not end there. Both states approached the courts seeking a review of the tribunal’s decision, keeping the legal battle alive.
The Cauvery issue resurfaced strongly in 2016, when Tamil Nadu approached the Supreme Court after Karnataka stated that it did not have sufficient water available in its reservoirs for further release.
Following the developments, the Supreme Court directed the Centre to establish a mechanism for implementing water-sharing decisions, which later led to the creation of the Cauvery Water Management Board (CWMB).
