Elaborate about dispute arising among the states of India for sharing of Kaveri water.
Answers
Explanation:
The sharing of waters of the Kaveri River has been the source of a serious conflict between the two states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The genesis of this conflict rests in two agreements in 1892 and 1924 between the Madras Presidency and Kingdom of Mysore. The 802 kilometres (498 mi) Kaveri river has 44,000 km2 basin area in Tamil Nadu and 32,000 km2 basin area in Karnataka.[1] The inflow from Karnataka is 425 TMCft whereas that from Tamil Nadu is 252 TMCft.[2]
Based on the inflow Karnataka is demanding its due share of water from the river. It states that the pre-independence agreements are invalid and are skewed heavily in the favour of the Madras Presidency, and has demanded a renegotiated settlement based on "equitable sharing of the waters". Tamil Nadu, on the other hand, says that it has already developed almost 3,000,000 acres (12,000 km2) of land and as a result has come to depend very heavily on the existing pattern of usage. Any change in this pattern, it says, will adversely affect the livelihood of millions of farmers in the state.[3][4] The pre Independence agreement was based on the area occupied by Mysuru Kingdom and Madras presidency. The areas of South Canara (previously under Madras presidency), Coorg Province which were later merged with Karnataka have not been accounted to calculate the right of Karnataka's water share. Although the River Cauvery originated on the Coorg Province, the Coorg province was not included in the agreement. This raises a question about the validity of bilateral agreements between Mysuru and Madras presidencies.