GULBARGA: Former Water Resources Minister and KPCC president M. Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday demanded that Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy convene a special Assembly session to discuss the impact of the report by assessors of the Cauvery Tribunal on the water requirement of the riparian states.

Mr. Kharge was here to participate in the 2550th Buddha Poornima celebrations at the newly-constructed Buddha Vihar complex on the outskirts of the city.

He told presspersons that the report which had pegged the water requirement of the State for irrigation in Cauvery basin at 251 tmc ft, covering an area of 18.85 lakh acres, was much lower than the original demand of the State for 408 tmc ft to irrigate 27 lakh acres.

Consensus

The State Government should take steps to create a consensus among all political parties to mount pressure on the Union Government and the tribunal to reject the assessors' report, which was not only unscientific but also detrimental to the interests of the State.

Resolution

Mr. Kharge said that the special Assembly session would enable members of all political parties to air their views on the issue and help the Government reach a consensus on the issue.

A resolution should also be passed in the Assembly to protect the interests of the State and the command area farmers of the Cauvery basin.

He pointed out already many command areas in the Cauvery basin in places such as Mysore, Tumkur, Hassan and tail-end farmers were facing shortage of water and the report of the assessors reducing the requirement of water would accentuate it.

Shock

Mr. Kharge said the report has come as a shock to the State and would damage the irrigation prospects of the State in the Cauvery delta.

He said the Government apart from consulting all political parties should also seek legal opinion and discuss the issue with irrigation experts and work out a plan to counter the assessors' report.

Terming the report unscientific and unrealistic, Mr. Kharge said that assessors' reports conveniently forgotten the quantum of water required in the Cauvery for meeting the drinking water need of important cities such as Bangalore, Mysore, Hassan, Mandya and many other towns and villages for which the drinking water is provided from the Cauvery.

He said that the State Government with the help of all political parties should exert pressure on the Union Government and the Tribunal to reject the assessors' report and ensure that it does not influence the final verdict of the tribunal.

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