Tamil Nadu Assembly Unanimously Resolves Against Karnataka’s Proposed Mekedatu Dam Project
The Tamil Nadu Assembly has unanimously passed a resolution opposing Karnataka's proposed Mekedatu dam on the Cauvery River. The state argues the project violates previous court rulings and tribunal awards, demanding that the Union Government reject all necessary project clearances.
Highlights
- •Tamil Nadu Assembly unanimously passed a resolution opposing the Mekedatu dam project.
- •The resolution argues the project violates Supreme Court and Tribunal water-sharing rulings.
- •Tamil Nadu urges the Union Government to deny all environmental and technical clearances.
- •The state demands that no new construction occurs without the consensus of all basin states.
The Tamil Nadu Assembly has officially recorded its strong opposition to the Karnataka Government's unilateral efforts to build a dam across the Cauvery River at Mekedatu. This formal move highlights growing tensions over water resource management, as the state legislature seeks to block the project entirely.
Legislative Stance on the Mekedatu Project
A resolution was unanimously passed in the Tamil Nadu Assembly after being introduced by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay. The legislative body has firmly urged the Union Government to withhold any form of approval, specifically demanding that both technical and environmental clearances for the Mekedatu dam project be denied. This decision underscores the state's insistence that such developments must not proceed without the explicit agreement of all involved basin states.
The resolution notes that the unilateral action by Karnataka is in direct violation of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal’s final award, issued on February 5, 2007. Furthermore, the state argued that the plan contradicts the Supreme Court’s definitive judgment from February 16, 2018. According to the assembly, the Cauvery Basin is already considered a deficit region, and all available water resources have been strictly apportioned among the various basin states.
Defending Farmers' Interests
The legislative house emphasized that because the basin is already fully utilized, no new project should be initiated within the Cauvery Basin. By seeking to halt the Mekedatu dam construction, Tamil Nadu intends to safeguard the interests of its local farming community, which relies heavily on these water supplies. The resolution calls upon the central authorities to advise the neighboring government against pursuing any new water storage facilities at Mekedatu or any other location within the basin without mandatory concurrence.
Furthermore, the Assembly has requested that the Central Water Commission refrain from processing, examining, or granting any approval to the Detailed Project Report submitted by the administration in Karnataka. The house remains united in supporting all measures taken by the Tamil Nadu Government to prevent this attempt. Earlier in the session, Leader of the House and Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management, K A Sengottaiyan, ensured that this critical resolution took priority over the standard discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the Governor’s Address. The day also included formal expressions of condolence for several notable public and cultural figures, including Nallakannu, C K Ramaswamy, and film personalities R B Choudary, K Rajan, and Bharatiraja.
