Cauvery Dispute : CM says, Karnataka delegation to meet advocate Fali S Nariman

BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said a delegation from the state government will meet senior advocate Fali S Nariman next week to discuss whether the state should go ahead with the constitution of the Expert Committee on Cauvery Basin Management.

The CM chaired an all-party floor leaders' meeting on Tuesday to discuss the Centre's proposal on constituting an expert committee. The Centre has sent the proposal to the states with the names of the experts and also the terms of reference.

In the meeting attended by Water Resources Minister M B Patil, officials and BJP and JD(S) leaders, it was decided that they will seek opinion of the state government's legal team in the national capital.

A delegation consisting of floor leaders and officers will visit New Delhi and consult advocate Nariman next week.

The meeting was convened to discuss the impact of constituting the committee on the final hearing of the appeals filed by Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala against the 2007 award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal on sharing of Cauvery river water, which will commence from July 11.

According to the Water Resources Department, the panel's function is to identify and document the key factors behind the inter-state water dispute in Cauvery basin, to estimate water availability and demands in various scenarios and to suggest a permanent institutional mechanism for resolving the inter-state water dispute among other functions.