In what could be a shocking revelation, a veteran bureaucrat who has played active role in sorting out the Cauvery River Water Dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka without luck says a solution acceptable to all stakeholders would always remain elusive.
Various scientific researches prove that Cauvery is facing water shortage due to cutting down of trees and encroachments along the riverbed for sand mining and construction. A latest trend along the banks of the river Cauvery in the Tiruchi region is the constriction of high-end apartments and villas for the elite class in violation of all laws.
He also said that rulers in Tamil Nadu were never interested in addressing the issue in a pragmatic way by chalking out an alternate action plan to address the water scarcity faced by the farmers in the State.
“We never ventured to draw out an alternate action plan to meet the situation arising out of the non-availability of water from Karnataka. It is an open knowledge that Karnataka has reservations in releasing water to Tamil Nadu. But Tamil Nadu is fully into a legal battle with Karnataka without drawing alternative plan B or plan C to help the farmers in the Cauvery basin (mainly the districts of Tiruchirappalli, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam), “said P Shankar, former chief secretary of Tamil Nadu who also served as India's Chief Vigilance Commissioner during the UPA regime.
The Opposition DMK is staging a State-wide agitation against the AIADMK government in the State as well as the NDA Government at the Centre for not constituting the Cauvery Management Board as per the order issued by the Supreme Court on February 16. “The Opposition parties know very well that the constitution of CMB is not that easy. But they have to convince the people that they are agitating for the issue,” said Shankar.
He also revealed the reason why Tamil Nadu was for not chalking out a plan B or plan C to meet the exigencies arising out of Karnataka failing to release Cauvery water. “It will be like a political suicide by whichever party draws the alternate plan of action. It will look like conceding defeat to Karnataka. Hence no Governments in Tamil Nadu have dared to think in that line,” he explained.
Experts have suggested many measures like changes in cropping pattern, inter linking of peninsular Indian rivers and setting up of desalination plants along Tamil Nadu coast line. Prof M S Swaminathan, eminent agricultural scientist and his team of scientists at MSSRF in Chennai had suggested “More Crop and Income Per Drop of Water” as an alternative measure to counter water shortage.
Similarly, farmers were given a suggestion to change the cropping pattern in the Cauvery Basin districts. “Paddy being a water intensive crop, it would be ideal if farmers switch over from it to cash crops which require less amount of water for irrigation,” said Shankar.
But farmers feigned ignorance about any plan of action drawn out by the State Government. “Till date nobody has suggested to us anything like this. If there is no water from Cauvery or there is no water in bore wells, the entire crop is washed out. For the last six years we have been suffering crop loss because of non availability of water ,” said Kattumannarkoil Kannan, a farmer leader.
R V Giri, president, Confederation of Indian Farmers Association (CIFA) said it was doubtful whether the State Government has any alternate plan. Giri was of the view that the chances of formation of the CMB were bleak.