Tipu Sultan or Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar?
The recent remarks by Social Welfare Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, claiming that Tipu Sultan laid the foundation for the Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) Dam, have triggered an avoidable controversy. At the heart of the claim is a Persian inscription at the entrance to the Dam, which the Minister believes links Tipu to the Dam’s origin. However, a closer examination of historical evidence reveals a different story.
The KRS Dam, located at the site of the erstwhile Kannambadi village, was constructed beginning in 1911 and completed 20 years later, entirely under the reign of Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (1902-40).
The project was conceived as part of a massive irrigation and electrification initiative and was planned and designed by Sir M. Visvesvaraya, one of India’s most celebrated engineers and statesmen. It was a monumental engineering achievement of its time and a testament to the vision and administrative support of the benevolent Maharaja. There is no ambiguity in historical records about the period of its construction. The entire funding, planning and execution of the Dam was under the patronage of the Mysore Maharaja and the Mysore State Government. Therefore, attributing the foundation of the KRS Dam to Tipu Sultan is a misrepresentation of facts.
A question may arise: Where does the Persian inscription come in?
Records show that during the construction of the Dam, a Persian inscription of Tipu Sultan was found at the site and it was embedded into the wall of the entrance gate, alongside an inscription commemorating the contribution of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar.
This action seems to have been misunderstood as evidence of Tipu’s role in the modern Dam’s construction. But the gate itself was built as part of the KRS project during Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV, and the inscription’s inclusion was simply an act of preservation, and not a historical attribute to Tipu as the builder of the present Dam.
Now, coming to the issue of Tipu. Historical records make it amply clear that Tipu Sultan built an embankment across the river Cauvery. A Persian inscription to the east of the Cauvery River bank at Anandur in Mysuru taluk records says, “The embankment which is situated to the west of the capital was raised by order of Tipu Sultan.”
It adds, “On the most auspicious day, when Venus and Jupiter were in conjunction in the sign of Aries, this work began.” It also reveals that “The embankment, more than 70 feet high, was raised by charitable purposes and lakhs were expended thereon.”
The embankment was for the purpose of cultivation. The cultivators have to pay three-fourths (¾) of the tax to the Government, the remaining one-fourth (¼) being exempt.
The inscription corresponds to 1797 AD, the Persian date mentioned on the stone being San 1226, sal Shadab, mahe Takhi 29, corresponding with Hijra 1212, 27th of Zi-bash (Zil-heg). (Epigraphia Carnatica Vol. 5, Inscription No. 112, Page 262 & 263).
However, this embankment was certainly not the present KRS Dam. It was one among several such structures built during the Vijayanagara and Mysuru Wadiyars’ period across the Cauvery River at Srirangapatna.
But to go into details of those would be a different story.
We must distinguish between historic embankments, constructed either for irrigation or for crossing a river, and a modern multipurpose masonry Dam like the KRS. The KRS Dam remains a modern engineering marvel, built under Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV and Sir M. Visvesvaraya. Misattributing its origins undermines the achievements of the Mysore monarchy and the legacy they have left behind.
Unfortunately, such statements, lacking a historical base, contribute to unnecessary controversies, besides gaining ground as facts.
By Gouri Satya, Senior Journalist
This post was published on August 7, 2025 6:59 pm