Authorities decide on construction of dam: SC on plea against proposed reservoir at Mekedatu
New Delhi(PTI): It is for the authorities to decide on construction of a dam, the Supreme Court said on Friday and asked the petitioner, who had raised issues related to the proposed construction of a reservoir at Mekedatu, to send a reminder to them for considering his representation expeditiously.
A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and C T Ravikumar asked the petitioner whether he has made any representation to the government on the issue.
The petitioner told the bench that he had sent representations to the Centre as well as the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, but he has not received any response.
The petitioner has made representation to different authorities with regard to the subject matter of this writ petition as back as in January 2021. It will be open to the petitioner to send reminder to the concerned authorities for considering that representation expeditiously, the bench said.
On receipt of such request, the concerned authorities ought to respond to the petitioner about the outcome of the representation, one way or the other, preferably within three months therefrom, the bench said in its order while disposing of the plea.
Earlier, the Tamil Nadu government had moved the apex court seeking to restrain Karnataka from proceeding with any activity regarding the proposed construction of a reservoir at Mekedatu across the inter-state Cauvery river.
During the hearing on Friday, the bench observed that it is not for the court to decide where a dam should be constructed. The authorities will decide this. It is not our job. First, they have to take a decision. If that decision is illegal then we will step in, not otherwise, the bench said.
The petitioner had filed two separate pleas on the issue in the top court.
In one of the pleas, he had said that the proposed construction of dam at Mekedatu would destroy the already battered Cauvery river and change the climate as well as the forest area there.
The petition said the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary hosts unique and endangered wildlife species and their habitats must not be disturbed by any kind of constructions.
In its plea filed earlier in the top court, the Tamil Nadu government had stated that the planning of the Mekedatu project by Karnataka with a capacity of 67.16 TMC ft and generation of 400 MW power at a cost of about Rs 9,000 crore is in gross violation of the decision of Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
