Will follow SC order on releasing water to Tamil Nadu, will keep farmers interest in mind too: DKShi
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who is responsible for the water resources portfolio, announced on Friday that the Karnataka government will adhere to the Supreme Court's order to release water to Tamil Nadu while safeguarding the interests of Cauvery basin farmers in Karnataka.
The Supreme Court has directed Karnataka to release 5,000 cusecs of water daily to Tamil Nadu for a period of 15 days. The court is set to hear Tamil Nadu's plea regarding directives to Karnataka for Cauvery water release on September 6.
A three-judge bench consisting of Justices BR Gavai, PS Narasimha, and PK Mishra ruled that the daily release of 5,000 cusecs for 15 days, as per the order of the Cauvery Water Management Authority, will continue until the upcoming hearing.
Shivakumar stated, "Tamil Nadu had requested 24,000 cusecs, and we argued that we could only release 3,000 cusecs due to the distressing situation. As a result of our argument, the court ordered us to release 5,000 cusecs, and we will comply. We have also requested an inspection of the storage status at our dams. They can do that."
He noted that Tamil Nadu should consider Karnataka's plight as the latter does not have enough water to meet its drinking water needs. Shivakumar reminded the neighboring state that it had consumed 80% more water last year and reiterated that the proposed Mekedatu balancing reservoir project is the solution to the ongoing Cauvery River water-sharing issue between both states.
"Opposition parties want us to stop releasing water to Tamil Nadu. We cannot do that as it would amount to a violation of the court's order. We have presented our case before the authority, and the Supreme Court has rendered its verdict," Shivakumar emphasized.
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Karnataka sees drop in groundwater use, surge in recharge capacity: 2025 report
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Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka has recorded a significant decline in groundwater usage alongside a notable increase in annual recharge capacity, reflecting the impact of sustained water conservation efforts and good rainfall, Minister N S Boseraju said on Wednesday.
Releasing the 2025 Groundwater Assessment Report at Vikas Soudha, he said the gains are the result of good rainfall, focused policy interventions, and large-scale water conservation initiatives implemented over the past two years under the leadership of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.
According to the report, overall groundwater extraction has reduced from 68.44 per cent in 2024 to 66.49 per cent in 2025, indicating more responsible and sustainable usage patterns across the state.
At the same time, annual groundwater recharge capacity has increased from 18.74 billion cubic metres (BCM) in 2024 to 19.28 BCM in 2025, while annual extractable groundwater resources rose from 16.88 BCM to 17.41 BCM, the minister’s office said in a statement.
“This simultaneous reduction in usage and increase in recharge reflects our government’s commitment to long-term water sustainability,” the Minor Irrigation, Science and Technology Minister said.
The improvement has been driven largely by the expansion of water conservation structures (WCS) across the state.
Recharge through such structures increased by 29.11 per cent, from 0.81 BCM to 1.04 BCM within a year, the report stated.
Notably, the number of water conservation works has risen sharply from 3.15 lakh in 2024 to 3.94 lakh in 2025, strengthening the state’s groundwater recharge ecosystem.
The report indicates improvement in groundwater status across 11 taluks, with several regions moving to safer categories.
Highlighting these changes, the minister pointed out that Chamarajanagar taluk has improved from "over-exploited" to "critical".
Similarly, taluks including Athani, Channapatna, Molakalmuru, Ranebennur, Savanur, and Shiggaon have successfully transitioned from "semi-critical" to "safe" status.
Domestic groundwater extraction has also declined by 0.58 per cent, dropping from 1,21,731 hectare-metres (ham) in 2024 to 1,21,023 ham in 2025. Officials attribute this to increased reliance on surface water under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM).
Boseraju said that initiatives such as lake rejuvenation, year-round water supply through treated and surface water, sustained public awareness campaigns, and good rainfall have played a key role in reducing over-extraction and enhancing recharge.
“Instead of depending solely on the 120-day monsoon, we are ensuring water availability throughout all 365 days through scientific management. This has strengthened long-term water security for both farmers and urban residents,” he said.
Announcing a major technological step forward in future governance, the minister added, “To further safeguard our resources, we are rolling out the Digital Water Stack (DWS) initiative. Under this framework, we will soon initiate space technology and AI-based satellite surveillance to obtain real-time data for continuous groundwater monitoring.”
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