Parliament Question: Construction of Proposed Mekedatu Reservoir Project across Cauvery River

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1844 ANSWERED ON 30.07.2026 CONSTRUCTION OF PROPOSED MEKEDATU RESERVOIR PROJECT ACROSS CAUVERY RIVER 1844. Shri K E PRAKASH: Dr. M K VISHNU PRASAD: Shri SELVAGANAPATHI T.M.: Dr. GANAPATHY RAJKUMAR P: THIRU THANGA TAMILSELVAN: Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state: (a) whether the Union Government has received any proposal from the State Government of Karnataka for construction of the Mekedatu Reservoir Project across Cauvery River, if so, the details and the present status thereof; (b) whether this is being done without final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal, the Hon'ble Supreme Court judgement, consent of the State Government of Tamil Nadu and approval of Union Government, if so, the details thereof; (c) whether the Union Government has taken note of demand of State Government of Tamil Nadu since beginning of the said proposal not to grant any form of approval including environmental clearances as well as Central Water Commission not to examine, process or grant approval to the Detailed Project Report, if so, the details thereof and the reaction of the Union Government in this regard; 1(d) whether any representations have been received from farmers' organisations in regard to likely impact of the proposed Project on irrigation and agriculture and water availability in the Cauvery basin, particularly in the Cauvery Delta and other districts of Tamil Nadu, if so, the details thereof; (e) whether the Union Government has conducted any study in this regard in coordination with concerned Ministries and statutory authorities to safegaurd the interests of Cauvery basin farmers, if so, the details thereof; and (f) the steps taken by the Government to support irrigation-dependent farmers in the event of any disruption in water availability and to safeguard the legitimate share of Tamil Nadu under the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal Award? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY) (a) Detailed Project Report (DPR) of Mekedatu Balancing Reservoir cum Drinking Water project, Karnataka submitted in 2019 has been returned to the project authority with the request to submit the revised DPR in compliance with the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT) Award and as per the extant Central Water Commission (CWC) guidelines. (b) to (e) As per the Hon’ble Supreme Court judgment dated 16.02.2018 regarding the Cauvery water dispute, there is no mention that State of Karnataka has to obtain the consent of the other riparian States namely Tamil Nadu, Kerala and UT of Puducherry to construct any kind of structure across river Cauvery. Hon’ble Supreme Court in its Order dated 16.02.2018 has found the Clause XVIII of Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (CWDT) Award of 2007 appropriate and reiterated in its Order that “Nothing in the order of this Tribunal shall impair the right or power or authority of any State to regulate within its boundaries the use of water or to enjoy the benefit of waters within that State in a manner not inconsistent with the order of this Tribunal”. 2The Government of India has taken note of the representations received from the Government of Tamil Nadu and farmers' organisations expressing concerns regarding the possible impacts of the proposed project on the Cauvery Delta region, including drinking water availability in other districts. Representations received in respect of any project are examined, as appropriate, during appraisal of the project in accordance with the applicable procedure. (f) In exercise of the powers conferred by section 6A of Inter-State River Water Disputes (ISRWD) Act, 1956, the Central Government vide Gazette notification dated 01.06.2018 notified the Cauvery Water Management Scheme (CWMS), inter-alia, constituting the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) and Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC), to give effect to the decision of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal, as modified by the Hon’ble Supreme Court vide its Order dated 16.02.2018. ***** 3