Will the Krishna Tribunal Meeting See Strong Demands for Gazette Notification?

Bengaluru, May 3 (NationPress) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah emphasized the necessity for a gazette notification at the upcoming Krishna River Valley meeting, which involves four participating states and is scheduled by the Union Jal Shakti Minister on May 7.

In a media briefing in Bengaluru on Saturday, the Chief Minister revealed that a preparatory discussion was conducted earlier that day with Deputy Chief Minister and Water Resources Minister D.K. Shivakumar, along with other ministers, legal advisors, and senior officials to finalize the state's position.

He pointed out that although the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal-II delivered its ruling on December 30, 2010, and a notification was issued in 2013, there has been no further notification from the central government.

“The meeting has been convened only after Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar and I engaged with the Union Irrigation Minister and advocated for it,” said Siddaramaiah.

The verdict from the second tribunal allocated 173 TMC of water to Karnataka. “To effectively utilize this allocation, the dam height must be elevated from 519 meters to 524 meters. This necessitates the issuance of a gazette notification. We will reiterate this demand in the forthcoming meeting,” he added.

The Chief Minister also mentioned that both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have submitted their applications. “They should utilize the water allocated to them. Given that the Supreme Court has not provided any interim order on this matter, we will proceed with raising the dam height to 524 meters,” he concluded.

Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar asserted that the Karnataka government will press the Central government to issue a gazette notification in accordance with the Krishna River Water Disputes Tribunal verdict, allowing the state to access its rightful share of water.

He stated that this issue will be prominently raised during the meeting organized by the Union Jal Shakti Minister on May 7, and an all-party meeting will follow in Karnataka to discuss the matter further.

During a press conference at Vidhana Soudha, Shivakumar said: “We have persistently urged the central government to issue the gazette notification based on the 2010 tribunal ruling. Consequently, the Union Minister has convened a meeting with ministers from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra. To prepare, we held a pre-meeting today to solidify the state’s position.”

He added, “The preparatory meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, included the Law Minister and relevant district ministers such as R.B. Timmapur, M.B. Patil, Shivananda Patil, and Sharanabasappa Darshanapur. Various suggestions were made, and a team of legal experts from Delhi was also present. We have outlined the state's strategy and stance for the May 7 meeting. The entire team will represent Karnataka and present our case.”

Shivakumar further noted that the decision to move forward with the land acquisition process for the project had already been made during the Belagavi Assembly session.

“Despite the tribunal verdict being issued in 2010, the Centre has yet to issue the gazette notification. Karnataka has incurred significant losses over the past 15 years. Thus, we are intensifying our pressure on the Centre. The project's costs have also risen annually. Valuable water is being wasted, and we are advocating for its utilization. It's a positive development that the Centre has finally recognized our situation and called for a meeting,” Shivakumar stated.