On Tuesday, September 26, farmers and Karnataka Rakshana Vedike staged a protest against the Cauvery Water Management Authority’s (CWMA) decision to release 5,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu. Bus services from Tamil Nadu to Karnataka were affected due to the bandh in Bengaluru. Several buses from Tamil Nadu were stopped at Zuzuvadi in the state’s Krishnagiri district. The police are also said to have detained some of the pro-Kannada protesters, including the BJP leaders after the protesters surrounded the Raj Bhavan in Bengaluru.
#BengaluruBandh: BJP leaders being detained by the state police as showdown in Bengaluru escalates over Cauvery water issue
— Republic (@republic) September 26, 2023
Republic's @prajwalprasadh reports #LIVE; tune in only here-https://t.co/5C8MAHsMNQ #CauveryWater #CauveryWaterIssue #Bengaluru #Karnataka #Siddaramaiah… pic.twitter.com/tH1jIAhyUa
According to the reports, today’s dawn-to-dusk Bengaluru bandh to protest the supply of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu is expected to disrupt daily life, as KSRTC buses and autorickshaws would be unable to travel. The bandh is sought by farmer organisations in the staate.
While the city’s schools and universities have announced a holiday, some industry and trade organisations, as well as a number of hotels, have also stated that they will remain closed. However, the Namma Metro services are likely to continue as usual. Section 144 has also been imposed in the city.
#Bengaluru bandh on Cauvery water-sharing issue between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu pic.twitter.com/OHENTtCCTQ
— DD News (@DDNewslive) September 26, 2023
IT and tech companies meanwhile have activated business continuity plans, and many have urged their employees to work from home to safeguard their safety and the seamless operation of the business throughout the strike.
The said protest has been organised by farmer groups and pro-Kannada organisations. More than 175 other organisations have declared support to the bandh. Further, amid the bandh, several airlines have issued travel warnings to travelers flying to and from Kempegowda International Airport.
Vistara Airlines, IndiGo, SpiceJet, and Akasa Air have issued warnings of disruptions and asked passengers to arrive early at Bengaluru Airport. “Due to the ‘Bengaluru Bandh’ on September 26, 2023, private transport might be disrupted. Customers traveling from Bengaluru are advised to allow more time for their journey to the airport. Thank you,” Vistara wrote on Twitter.
#TravelUpdate Due to the 'Bengaluru Bandh' on September 26, 2023, private transport might be disrupted. Customers travelling from Bangalore are advised to allow more time for their journey to the airport. Thank you.
— Vistara (@airvistara) September 25, 2023
IndiGo Airline, meanwhile, reminded passengers that their journey to the airport would take longer than expected and encouraged them to arrive at least 2.5 hours before domestic flights and 3.5 hours before international flights.
It said, “Travel time to #Bengaluru airport may take longer than normal due to Bandh declared in #Bengaluru. We recommend arriving at least 2.5 hrs before domestic and 3.5 hrs before international departures.”
#6ETravelAdvisory: Travel time to #Bengaluru airport may take longer than normal due to Bandh declared in #Bengaluru. We recommend arriving at least 2.5 hrs before domestic and 3.5 hrs before international departures. For flight status, visit https://t.co/TQCzzykjgA
— IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) September 25, 2023
The Cauvery water dispute
The Cauvery water-sharing dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu has resurfaced despite the Supreme Court’s decision in 2018 on the old conflict. The inadequate rainfall in the river’s catchment area in Karnataka is the trigger this time. The protests are in response to the ruling to distribute water at a rate of 5,000 cusecs per day to Tamil Nadu.
Protesters state that water is being transferred to Tamil Nadu even though the southwest monsoon is winding down and storage levels in Karnataka’s Cauvery basin reservoirs are extremely low. The Cauvery is the primary source of drinking water for Bengaluru as well as irrigation for farmland in the Mandya district of the state.
The Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA), a primarily apolitical body established under the direction of the Union Water Resources ministry to oversee the implementation of the Supreme Court judgments issued in 2018, is the key organisation that now governs the conflict between the two states.
The claim of political parties in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu is that the Supreme Court order of 2018 outlined water-sharing requirements only for a normal monsoon year, not a distress year, as the current one is proving to be with rainfall that is more than 30% below normal.
The DMK in Tamil Nadu, as well as the Congress in Karnataka, have asked the Prime Minister to intervene in order to establish a framework for resolving disputes in difficult circumstances. The rainfall in August and September, out of the four months of monsoon that began in June, was the lowest in Karnataka in the last 123 years.
SC’s ruling in 2018
In its ruling from February 2018, the Supreme Court cut Tamil Nadu’s share by 14.75 TMC while awarding Karnataka an additional share. Karnataka received an additional share to pay for drinking water in south Karnataka.
The Supreme Court distributed the 740 TMC of Cauvery water that must be divided annually as follows: 404.25 TMC to Tamil Nadu, 284.75 TMC to Karnataka, 30 TMC to Kerala, 7 TMC to Puducherry, and 14 TMC for environmental preservation and water that would otherwise be wasted into the sea.
The SC also mandated the establishment of the Cauvery Water Regulatory Committee (CWRC) and the Cauvery Water Mediation Authority (CWMA) in order to settle disputes between the states in accordance with the court’s final directives.
