Karnataka to once again approach CWRC expressing inability to release water to TN, says CM
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said the state will once again file a petition before the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) expressing its inability to release Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu.
CWRC on Tuesday had recommended that Karnataka release 5,000 cusecs of water every day for the next 15 days to the neighbouring state.
The Chief Minister, who today held a "special emergency meeting" following the CWRC recommendation, said his government will consult its legal team regarding releasing water and take a decision, and will also once again move the Supreme Court explaining the factual situation on the ground.
"We will once again file a petition before the CWRC stating that we don't have water, so can't release water, so reconsider (the recommendation). Let's see what they will do, based on that we will once again file a petition in the Supreme Court and we will try to inform the court the factual situation on the ground," Siddaramaiah said.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting here, he said, "meanwhile, we will discuss with the legal team whether to release 5,000 cusec per day or not. Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar is going to Delhi to discuss with the legal team on this and also regarding filing a petition. Keeping all this in mind, we will take a decision afterwards."
Other than Shivakumar, who is also Minister in-charge of Water Resources, Ministers of the Cauvery basin region, former Chief Ministers of all parties, senior Ministers of the state cabinet, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members were invited to participate in the emergency meeting.
However, B S Yediyurappa and Basavaraj Bommai of the BJP and H D Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) did not attend the meeting citing prior commitments.
Noting that the meeting was called following the CWRC's recommendation to release water, the CM said whether Cauvery or any other inter-state disputes, all parties have taken a unanimous stand so far, and have not indulged in politics on the issues of land, water, language and state's borders.
He further said he has explained the legal implications at the meeting, amid demands from various quarters not to release water.
Pointing out that the CWRC is a recommendatory body and has only made a recommendation, Siddaramaiah said, the state is going to appeal to them stating that Karnataka was not in a position to release water as there is no (adequate) water for crops and for drinking purposes.
He said he had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking time to lead an all-party delegation, but there has been no response so far. "I will once again write another letter to the PM highlighting the factual position on ground, if he gives time, we will go and meet him."
MPs have also said that they too will exert pressure on the Centre, the CM said.
Observing that the Parliament session is starting from September 18, he said the government is considering calling a meeting of state's MPs and central Ministers from Karnataka there during the session.
"On the whole we want to inform about our situation to the whole country, Supreme Court, CWRC and Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA). It is not our intention not to release water, but the situation is that there is no water-- we want to make people and all concerned understand this," he said, adding, representatives of all the parties who attended the meeting have agreed to this.
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Mumbai Metro lines 9 and 2B open for commuters
Mumbai (PTI): Commercial operations on the first phases of Mumbai Metro corridors 9 and 2B began on Wednesday morning, a day after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated the mass-transit routes, officials said.
While the Metro 9 marks the first direct connectivity between a suburb in Mumbai and a part of Thane city in the metropolitan region, the Line 2B will provide the first metro connectivity on the Harbour Line in Mumbai.
The 5.6-km elevated Phase 1 stretch of Metro Line 9 comprises four stations -- Dahisar East, Pandurangwadi, Miragaon and Kashigaon. The 5.53-km Phase 1 of Metro Line 2B has five stations, including Deshbhakt N G Acharya Udyan (Diamond Garden), Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Chowk, Deonar, Mankhurd and Maharashtra Nagar–Mandale.
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According to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), Line 9 is expected to cut travel time between Mira-Bhayandar in Thane district and Mumbai to around 30 minutes from the current one to two hours. Built at Rs 6,607 crore, it will eventually provide seamless connectivity to south Mumbai through interlinking with other lines.
With the addition of the two new lines, Mumbai’s operational Metro network has expanded to six corridors, including Line 1 (Ghatkopar-Andheri-Versova), Line 2A (Andheri West-Dahisar East), Line 7 (Dahisar East-Andheri East) and the underground Line 3 (Colaba-Bandra Kurla Complex-SEEPZ).
As per MMRDA, the revised timetable for Line 2A and Line 7 came into effect on Wednesday, aimed at improving frequency, predictability and overall commuter experience.
It said that with the inauguration of Line 9, Metro Line 2A will now operate as a standalone corridor between Andheri West and Dahisar East, with services from 5.50 am till around 11 pm and a peak frequency of about six minutes.
The integrated Line 7-9 corridor (Gundavali to Kashigaon), spanning 19.79 km, will operate from 5.50 am to 11 pm, with a peak frequency of under six minutes and 276 services on weekdays.
Metro Line 2B (Phase 1) services commenced at 6 am and will run till around 10.30 pm at intervals of approximately nine-and-a-half minutes, operating 209 services daily, according to officials.
MMRDA said the integration of Line 7 with Line 9 enables direct connectivity from Andheri East to Mira-Bhayandar, while Lines 2A and 7 will function as separate corridors.
A seamless interchange facility at Dahisar station will allow passengers to switch between Lines 2A and 7 without exiting the “paid” (ticketed) area.
