Karnataka CM meets Union Jal Shakti Minister, requests for clearance of Mekedatu reservoir DPR
New Delhi, Apr 5: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai called on Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Tuesday and requested him for clearance of the detailed project report (DPR) for the Mekedatu balancing reservoir across the Cauvery river.
Bommai's meeting with Shekhawat on this issue came days after the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a unanimous resolution on March 21 condemning the Karnataka government for its "unilateral" decision to proceed with the Mekedatu project.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Bommai said the state government is pursuing the Mekedatu project within the limits set by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal.
"Our project will not reduce the share of water that is to be given to Tamil Nadu. Therefore, the approval should be given to our DPR," he said.
The chief minister said that the neighbouring state will not face any problem with Karnataka implementing the Mekedatu multi-purpose project that involves building a balancing reservoir near Kanakapura in Ramanagara district.
Tamil Nadu has been getting excess water that was more than its share and the state will get its due share decided by the tribunal, he added.
In the meeting, the chief minister also discussed the long-pending Upper Krishna Project-III that will increase the height of the Almatti dam from 519 to 524 metres. The matter is in the Supreme Court.
Two judges have recused themselves from hearing the matter. The hearing will start after the Supreme Court engage new judges to hear the matter, he said.
The chief minister also took up the Godavari-Cauvery river interlinking project and said the DPR should not be approved unless the states concerned get equitable distribution of water.
"Till this is done, we have asked them not to approve the DPR. They have agreed to this. They have said they will issue a direction in this regard," he added.
In a separate meeting with Union Power Minister R K Singh, Bommai sought clearance for pending projects.
Bommai said that he will meet Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday.
ಇಂದು ನವದೆಹಲಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಜಲ ಶಕ್ತಿ ಸಚಿವ ಗಜೇಂದ್ರ ಸಿಂಗ್ ಶೇಖಾವತ್ ಅವರನ್ನು ಭೇಟಿ ಮಾಡಿ ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಹಲವು ನೀರಾವರಿ ಯೋಜನೆಗಳ ಕುರಿತು ಸಮಾಲೋಚನೆ ನಡೆಸಲಾಯಿತು.
— Basavaraj S Bommai (@BSBommai) April 5, 2022
Met the Union Minister of Jal Shakti @gssjodhpur in New Delhi today and discussed about various water projects in the state. pic.twitter.com/o5KIZHgQFo
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We will move court again to resist voter deletions: Mamata
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday hit out at the BJP and the Election Commission over voter deletions during the SIR exercise and said her party will move a court again to resist the removal of electors from the rolls.
Her comments came after nearly 91 lakh voters' names were deleted from the electoral rolls following the completion of the Special Intensive Revision in the state.
“You will not be able to defeat the TMC by deleting names. We will move a court again to resist the exclusion of names," Banerjee said while attacking her principal challenger BJP over the roll revision exercise.
Banerjee had in February argued in the Supreme Court as she sought an intervention in the SIR process.
The EC figures, which pushed the total deletion to over 90.83 lakh names from the original voter base of 7.66 crore in October 2025, showed that the proportion of removal of electors now remains at over 11.85 per cent.
Criticising the poll panel over the SIR process, she also said, "We will fight legally to get the names included on the list as per the Constitution. If people cannot cast their votes, what is the need to frame the tribunal? And then you are saying that the list has been frozen. What is this? We will challenge it and try to understand it."
Addressing a poll rally at Arambagh in Hooghly district, the TMC supremo accused the saffron party of trying to manipulate the electoral rolls and offering money to woo voters.
Banerjee also charged the Election Commission with intimidating people over the phone.
“It (EC) is working at the behest of the BJP. It is calling people over the telephone to threaten and intimidate them,” she claimed.
Later, while speaking at a rally in Balagarh in the same district, Banerjee warned that voting for the BJP would effectively mean "giving up fish, meat, and speaking in Bengali".
“People are not allowed to eat eggs, fish, or meat in the BJP-ruled states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. The same will happen here if the BJP comes to power," Banerjee claimed.
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