In a fresh row over utilisation of Cauvery basin water, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has said that the state would never allow Tamil Nadu government to go ahead with the newly-launched river linking project that aims to use surplus water in the Cauvery basin.
"We will not allow any state including Tamil Nadu to take away Cauvery surplus water. We will take strict action," the Chief Minister said on Monday, just a day after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami launched the Cauvery-South Vellaru-Vaigai-Gundar River Linking Scheme.
All about Tamil Nadu's new river linking project
The foundation stone for the first phase of Cauvery-South Vellaru-Vaigai-Gundar River Linking Scheme was launched by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister in Pudukkottai district on Sunday, February 21, to fulfill the long-standing demand of farmers of souther district of Tamil Nadu for irrigation water.
The Tamil Nadu government will spend Rs 14,400 crore on three-phased project, which aims at diverting surplus water in the Cauvery basin through a 262-km long canal which will start at a dam in Karur district through barren areas in Tiruchy, Pudukkottai, Sivagangai and Virudhunagar, to the Gundar river.
The cost of the first phase of the project is pegged at Rs 6,941 crore and consists of a 118.45 km canal that will be constructed from Kattalai Canal to South Vellaru in Pudukkottai. The first phase of project is expected to irrigate 42,170 acres of agricultural land in Karur, Tiruchy and Pudukkottai districts, as per New Indian Express.
Speaking at the laying foundation ceremony of the first phase, Chief Minister Palaniswami said the project was envisioned by former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. "This is a golden day in my life. It was a scheme former CM J Jayalalithaa wished to execute, and several people questioned whether it was feasible.... It is the proof," he said.
Second and third phases
The Tamil Nadu government will build a 109 km canal linking South Vellaru to Vaigai in the second phase of the project and is expected to benefit 23,245 acres of land in Sivagangai, Pudukkottai, and Ramanathapuram districts.
The third phase of the project will irrigate 44,547 acres of land in Ramanathapuram and Virudhunagar districts through a 34 km-long canal which will be built from Vaigai to Gundar.
