The Cauvery row has come alive once more in Karnataka, where Mandya farmers are protesting the discharge of water from the KRS and Kabini dams into Tamil Nadu.
This rebellion is born out of the fears held by the farmers of Mandya that scarce water supply may render their crop farming susceptible to rainfall risks.
The recent demonstrations came about after directives were issued by the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) and Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to Karnataka on releasing the water downstream.
The farmers have criticized the rationale behind the release of such large amounts of water when the reservoirs and the inflow is still an issue. In August, a directive of 12,000 cusecs of water was given every day for 15 days.
However, the rage here is not about Karnataka against Tamil Nadu alone. Rather, this rage reveals an inadequacy in water management. The farmers in both states depend on the same river for sustenance, and every year, when there is poor monsoon, the politics begins in Cauvery. In Tamil Nadu itself, the farmers are under tremendous stress; hence a proper distress-sharing mechanism is needed.
The protests by Mandya farmers thus serve as a reminder to India that the increasing unpredictability of water resources cannot be dealt with by means of piecemeal measures and conflicts between states.
