Mysuru/Bengaluru: Farmer groups and pro-Kannada organisations staged protests across the Cauvery basin Wednesday, declaring Karnataka could not spare even a drop of water for Tamil Nadu after the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) directed the state to release 3,500 cusecs daily for 15 days.Demonstrations were held in Bengaluru, Bengaluru South, Mysuru and Mandya districts, with protesters arguing that Karnataka should prioritise drinking water as it battles one of its worst rainfall deficits in recent years.The biggest protests were in drought-hit Mandya. With the Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) reservoir reportedly holding only about 12TMC of water, farmers asked how the state could comply with the order. They said all seven taluks in the district were drought-hit and warned that drinking water supplies to Mysuru, Mandya and Bengaluru could be affected if the monsoon remained weak.At Srirangapatna, farmers blocked the old Bengaluru-Mysuru Highway, formed a human chain and raised slogans. Karnataka Rakshana Vedike and other Kannada organisations staged separate protests at Sanjay Circle in Mandya. In symbolic demonstrations, protesters displayed lollipops to accuse the govt of misleading the public, scattered horse gram to highlight the plight of farmers unable to cultivate sugarcane and paddy, carried empty pots and staged road blockades. Police eventually cleared protesters and restored traffic.In Mysuru, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha president Badagalapura Nagendra called the CWRC order “unscientific” and warned of a statewide agitation if Karnataka released water. “All political parties must unite to protect farmers’ interests,” he said. “The govt should appeal the CWRC order and refuse to release water to Tamil Nadu.”In Mysuru, Karnataka State Sugarcane Growers’ Association president Kuruburu Shanthakumar led farmers in blocking the Mysuru-Ooty Road while carrying empty pots. Another protest was held outside the Mysuru City Corporation where farmers lay on the road, disrupting traffic, before police removed them.“Major reservoirs do not have enough water even for drinking. Why was the actual situation not placed before the committee?” Shanthakumar said. “The kind of Cauvery agitation witnessed in 2002 could be repeated.”
