The Supreme Court will on Thursday hear Tamil Nadu’s plea seeking directions to Karnataka to comply with the Cauvery Water Management Authority’s (CWMA) decision to release 3,500 cusecs of water per day for 15 days from the Kabini and Krishna Raja Sagara reservoirs.
Key Statements
The CWMA’s direction would require Karnataka to release 4.536 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water — equivalent to 3,500 cusecs per day for 15 days, by August 12, according to Tamil Nadu.
Political Context
The DMK, which approached the Supreme Court ahead of the Tamil Nadu government, has similarly sought immediate directions to Karnataka to release Cauvery water at Billigundulu and comply with the CWMA’s decision. The state has also cited rainfall and inflow data to counter Karnataka’s contention of water distress. Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will attend the ‘purnahuti’ of the yagam in the evening.
The state has alleged that Karnataka has not complied even with the limited 3,500-cusec direction. Actual flows recorded at Billigundulu between July 29 and August 2 ranged from just 158 cusecs to 530 cusecs, substantially below the mandated daily release, according to the application. As on August 3, Karnataka had gross storage of 77.537 TMC in its four principal reservoirs — 23.078 TMC in KRS, 18.610 TMC in Kabini, 7.827 TMC in Harangi and 28.022 TMC in Hemavathy, according to the application. It said that while the catchments upstream of KRS, Kabini and the uncontrolled catchment received below-normal rainfall between June 1 and July 27, recent rainfall had led to an improvement in storage levels in Karnataka’s reservoirs. The Tamil Nadu Government, headed by Chief Minister Joseph Vijay on Monday (August 10, 2026) sought an early hearing of its application over the Cauvery water allocation dispute with neighbouring Karnataka. The State Government sought a judicial direction to Karnataka to implement a Central Water Management Authority (CWMA) decision of July 30 to ensure the release of 3500 cusecs for 15 days from its two reservoirs at Kabini and Krishna Raja Sagara. The State said they had reviewed the hydrometeorological condition in the Cauvery basin on July 30 and endorsed the July 28 recommendations of the Cauvery “Even if Karnataka ensured flows of 3500 cusecs for 15 days, it would get only 4.536 TMC leaving a backlog of 5.379 TMC even as per the pro rata assessment of distress as on July 28… 28.07.2026. If the inflows into the 4 major reservoirs of Karnataka against 30 years average up to August 3, 2026 is considered, the pro-rata ratio works out to 46.34%. Based on this pro-rata ratio, the flows due from June 1, 2026 to August 12, 2026 works out to 26.95 TMC. The direction given by the CWRC and CWMA is only 4.536 TMC, which is far less than the quantum of water as per distress proportion,” the Tamil Nadu application has said. An expert committee appointed by the Telangana government on the impact El Nino on July 30 suggested providing subsidy on drip and sprinkler irrigation systems and promoting drought-tolerant crops during the current Kharif season, among others, to minimise adverse impact of El Nino and deficit rainfall.
“It is evident that Karnataka has wilfully not complied with the directions of the CWRC/CWMA,” Tamil Nadu has said. “If water is not realised at Biligundlu now, the standing Kuruvai crop will wither before harvest, the ensuing Samba cultivation — the mainstay of the Delta, will equally be imperilled,” the party has said. The Tamil Nadu government said Karnataka had continued to defy the orders of the Cauvery Tribunal for allocation of water to its neighbour except a few times when there were inevitable surpluses in the reservoirs on account of floods. Responding to the government’s decision to perform the yagam, BRS Working President K T Rama Rao has said there is nothing wrong in conducting it, but the government should take concrete steps to provide relief to the farmers.
Hyderabad, Telangana Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and his wife N Padmavathi, who is an MLA, on Monday took part in a ‘Varuna Yagam’ in Nalgonda district, being conducted by the state government seeking bountiful rains during the current monsoon season. A release from the Irrigation Minister’s office on Sunday said, halfway through the southwest monsoon and already into the second week of August, Telangana’s two major rivers – Krishna and the Godavari – are still waiting for inflows that will ensure adequate water availablility in the reservoirs and irrigation systems.
Responses
On August 9 last year, Nagarjuna Sagar had approximately 310.25 TMC, with the reservoir level at around 589.40 feet – virtually at Full Reservoir Level.
On the corresponding day this year, it has less than half that storage, it said.
