Tamil Nadu moves Supreme Court over Cauvery water dispute with Karnataka

Shivakumar on Sunday said, “If the Mekedatu reservoir is built, nearly 90% of the benefit would go to Tamil Nadu”

Tamil Nadu on Monday filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking to resolve the sharing of Cauvery water dispute with Karnataka, the government said.

The development comes in the wake of Karnataka chief minister DK Shivakumar’s remark that the Mekedatu reservoir is the long term answer to the Cauvery dispute, arguing that Tamil Nadu would receive most of its advantages.

Shivakumar on Sunday said, “If the Mekedatu reservoir is built, nearly 90% of the benefit would go to Tamil Nadu, more than Karnataka. At no point can that water be diverted back to Bengaluru. Anyone can visit the project site and understand the facts.”

Tamil Nadu has been opposing the Shivakumar government’s stand and in June 2026, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government passed a unanimous resolution against the proposal in assembly to construct a dam at Mekedatu.

In a statement on Monday, the Tamil Nadu government referred to the 139th meeting of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee which reviewed the hydro-meteorological situation in the Cauvery basin and directed the Karnataka government to release water from Krishna Raja Sagara and Kabini reservoirs to ensure a flow of 3,500 cusecs at Biligundlu for 15 days from July 29 to August 12.

Also Read:Why Karnataka-Tamil Nadu Cauvery dispute keeps recurring — a river that has changed, a framework that hasn’t

Subsequently, at the 54th emergency meeting of the Cauvery Water Management Authority on July 30, the hydro-meteorological conditions were reviewed and the committee’s decision was confirmed.

As per the orders of the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee, the actual amount of water received at Biligundulu between July 29 and August 2 was between 158 and 550 cusecs per second, the Tamil Nadu government said.

Biligundulu is a village bordering Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and it is the entry point of the Cauvery river from Karnataka into Tamil Nadu.

However, as of Monday, the total water storage across Karnataka’s reservoirs stands at 77.537TMC comprising 23.078 TMC in Krishna Raja Sagara, 18.610TMC in Kabini, 7.827TMC in Harangi and 28.022TMC in Hemavathi.

“Therefore, on a proportional basis, the Karnataka government should face no difficulty in releasing Tamil Nadu’s due share of water from its reservoirs to Biligundulu. Due to heavy rainfall and increased inflows in the catchment areas of the Krishna Raja Sagara and Kabini reservoirs, Tamil Nadu’s proportionate share of water at Biligundulu amounts to 26.954TMC. Accordingly, the order issued by the Cauvery Water Management Authority for 4.536TMC is very low,” the government observed.

Under these circumstances, the Karnataka government failed to supply the required water on a proportional basis and since Tamil Nadu’s due share stands at 26.954TMC, the CM met the counsel of senior legal experts and as per the instructions, decided to approach the Supreme Court.

“As per the instructions of the chief minister, a petition has been filed today in the apex court to resolve this issue and to ensure Tamil Nadu receives its rightful share of water in a timely manner,” the government said.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party Tamil Nadu unit said that the project would largely affect Tamil Nadu if its gets implemented in Karnataka.

“The formation of the Cauvery Water Management Authority was the final and permanent solution. It was only because the two states were unable to hold joint talks that the Management Board was constituted as per the Supreme court judgement. Rather than benefitting Karnataka more, the Mekedatu project will severely affect Tamil Nadu,” BJP Tamil Nadu spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy said.