Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa has directed officials to prepare the action plan for the Mekedatu project at the earliest, which is vital for the state, Home, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Basavaraj Bommai said here on Wednesday.

This weekend Yediyurappa will hold a meeting with legal experts and technical experts on preparing the action plan for the project, Bommai told reporters.

"There is only a miscellaneous application pending in the Supreme Court with regard to the Mekedatu scheme.

The Chief Minister is going to convene a meeting this weekend. We will discuss with legal experts about the necessary approvals required and how to proceed further," he said.

Emphasising that the project is important for the state, Bommai said it will play a key role in Cauvery water management in future.

This will be a parallel dam to supply water during a water crisis.

The Mekedatu project has become a bone of contention between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, who often flag the issue of Cauvery water sharing whenever there is shortage in rainfall in the catchment areas of the river, which originates in Kodagu district in Karnataka and courses through Tamil Nadu.

Recently, Yediyurappa wrote to his Tamil Nadu counterpart M K Stalin, urging him not to oppose the project as it will benefit both states.

In response, Stalin requested Yediyurappa not to pursue the Mekedatu project, saying that it would "impound and divert" the uncontrolled water flow due to Tamil Nadu from Kabini sub-basin, the catchment area below Krishnarajasagar Dam, and also from Simsha, Arkavathy and Suvarnavathi sub- basins, besides other small streams.

To a question on when the monsoon session of the Karnataka legislature would be held, Bommai said it had not yet been decided, but he would discuss it with Yediyurappa.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



Gangolli: In an operation, the Gangolli police arrested a couple accused of a house robbery within seven hours of the incident.

The accused, identified as Vinayak (41) and his wife Pramila (30) from Gujjadi, were taken into custody following a coordinated investigation by the police team.

The robbery took place on the morning of January 21 when a bag containing jewelry was stolen from a house near Trasi Beach. Among the stolen items were a 16-gram gold necklace, a 16-gram bangle, and three gold rings weighing 3 grams, with the total value of the jewelry estimated at Rs 2 lakh. The culprits fled the scene on a scooty.

Following the registration of the case at the Gangolli police station, SSI Harish R. and a team comprising officers Shantaram, Raju, Nagaraj, Raghavendra, Sandeep Kurani, Maruti Nayak, and Dinesh swiftly gathered intelligence and tracked down the suspects by 8 p.m. on the same day. The stolen gold ornaments and the vehicle used in the crime have been recovered.

The accused were presented before the court, and further legal proceedings are underway.

Get all the latest, breaking news from Mangaluru and Dakshina Kannada in a single click. CLICK HERE to get all the latest news from Mangaluru.