All-party meeting on Cauvery issue 

Bengaluru: Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar (DKS) asserted that the interests of farmers and the people of Karnataka were above politics as the State prepares to respond to fresh directions from the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) and the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) to release 3,500 cusecs of Cauvery water daily to Tamil Nadu for 15 days. 

Chairing an all-party meeting at his Home Office ‘Krishna’, in Bengaluru this morning, Shivakumar said the Cauvery dispute with neighbouring Tamil Nadu was a long-standing issue that required a united approach. 

Stressing that the State Government’s priority was to safeguard drinking water needs, CM said he was confident that all political parties shared the same concern. 

“Before the hearings of the CWRC and CWMA, I met Union Ministers C.R. Patil, Pralhad Joshi and V. Somanna, besides former Chief Ministers Jagadish Shettar and Basavaraj Bommai, who are now Members of Parliament. I explained Karnataka’s difficult situation due to the low water level in the Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) reservoir. They, in turn, strongly presented Karnataka’s case before the Union Government,” he said. 

DKS thanked political leaders across party lines and Karnataka MPs for supporting the State’s stand during his recent visit to New Delhi, and reiterated that protecting Karnataka’s interests remained the Government’s priority. 

The meeting was attended by former Chief Ministers B.S. Yediyurappa, Siddaramaiah, H.D. Kumaraswamy, D.V. Sadananda Gowda and Basavaraj Bommai; Union Ministers V. Somanna and Shobha Karandlaje; Deputy Chief Minister Dr. G. Parameshwara; Ministers Ramalinga Reddy, Krishna Byre Gowda, M.B. Patil, U.T. Khader, and K.J. George; Special Representative of Karnataka in New Delhi T.B. Jayachandra; MPs Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, Govind Karjol; Leader of the Opposition R. Ashoka; and Chalavadi Narayanaswamy; former CM M. Veerappa Moily, former Minister H.K. Patil; KPCC President B.K. Hariprasad; BJP State President B.Y. Vijayendra, former High Court Judge Justice Nagamohan Das; Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty,  senior officials and representatives of various political parties.