Cauvery issue: Steps to expedite case in SC, says TN

Chennai, Feb 19: With the Centre yet to constitute the Cauvery Management Board and the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee, the Tamil Nadu government on Thursday said it was taking steps to expedite a case in this regard in the Supreme Court.

"Senior advocates of Tamil Nadu are discussing the possibilities of expediting the case," Chief Minister O Panneerselvam informed the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

While the 2007 final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal had been notified in a central gazette in February 2013, paving the way for constituting of CMB and CWRC, it had not been done so far, with his predecessor and AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa repeatedly taking it up with then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that year, he said.

The government had in November 2013 moved the Apex Court, seeking a direction to Centre for constituting CMB and CWRC after a panel set up by the Centre to supervise water release "did not take any steps" in this connection,the Chief Minister said.

However, the court had then declined an urgent hearing saying that the petition could be heard along with the pleas challenging the 2007 final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal.

Panneerselvam recalled that the Tamil Nadu Assembly had adopted a resolution in December 2014 urging Centre to immediately constitute CMB and CWRC and that the same had been communicated to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

PTI