| dc.description.abstract |
"The Cauvery River and its tributaries form definitely the most contentious , if not the most important, watershed in southern India. About half of the watershed exists in Karnataka, the rest is in Tamil Nadu. The Cauvery, like her multi-state and multinational cousins --the Mekong (Southeast Asia), the Colorado (Western U.S.), and the Okavango (southern Africa), is peaceful river in times of good rain, but when the rains fail peace fades. The most recent of these failures occurred when the monsoons failed to feed the Tamil Nadu side of the watershed in late 1995 and early 1996. Threats of violence advanced to violence and national level intervention was eventually needed. The central government headed by then prime minister Narasima Rao eventually convinced the Karnataka government to release 6 tmcft to Tamil Nadu. The Tamil Nadu Government continued to argue that an addition 6.5 tmcft was needed. That water was not released--perhaps it was one of factors that led to the defeat of the popular Dr. J. Jayalalitha in the 1996 elections. With the return of the rains the issue has faded somewhat, but Jayalitha's loss will not soon fade from political memory nor will the underlying causes of the problem. The rest of this paper will address; 1. The importance of the Cauvery to Karnataka; 2. The importance of the Cauvery to Tamil Nadu; 3. The roots of the problem; and 4. A long term solution." |
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