No holistic view of water use, says Alagh

Apart from political considerations, does this Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal’s verdict stand the test of efficient water use? Some experts are quite sceptical.

Apart from political considerations, does this Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal’s verdict stand the test of efficient water use? Some experts are quite sceptical.

“Going by the allocation to Tamil Nadu, it seems that the tribunal has accepted Tamil Nadu’s plea that they do not have groundwater,” said Y K Alagh, who was appointed as an expert in 1995 to suggest a water-sharing formula in that particular distress year.

Tamil Nadu has rich reserves of groundwater, especially in the Tanjore area. According to him, this particular award does

nothing to promote the efficient use of water as it does not look at availability of water in a holistic manner. “Apart from a sharing formula, I believe adversity should be turned into advantage. The Tanjore delta has adequate quantity of groundwater. Successive chief ministers of Tamil Nadu have argued that groundwater should not be taken into account because they are afraid that you are punished if you are efficient. If you use groundwater or use water more efficiently, you will get less water.”.

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Alagh, in his report, had suggested that canals in the garden areas of Karnataka be repaired so that water can be distributed much farther. Also, water-saving devices like drips and sprinklers can be used in Karnataka.

He said it is the years where the water is not normal (740 tmc) that it becomes a problem. The award says that in such years, the distribution will be reduced in a proporationate manner. “This does not work well. Karnataka is at a disadvantage in such years as they do not have the groundwater to fall back upon,” he said.