Chennai: The call for an all party meeting to discuss the Mekedatu issue grew louder in Tamil Nadu on Thursday. Following DMK, AIADMK and the Left parties, VCK too has demanded chief minister C Joseph Vijay to convene an all-party meeting. The demand arose after Karnataka chief minister D K Shivakumar denied releasing the stipulated quantity of water to Tamil Nadu as per Supreme Court’s final verdict.CPI state secretary M Veerapandian, CPM secretary P Shanmugam and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami have said TVK govt should convene the meeting before Vijay’s proposed visit to Karnataka. Thirumavalavan echoed the demand saying that the meeting should be convened immediately to formulate a unified response against Karnataka’s refusal to release water.The ruling party, however, has chosen to remain silent over the Mekedatu row, as neither the chief minister nor water resource minister N Anand have responded to the growing demand for the all-party meeting. When reporters sought the state govt’s response to the demand and its plans for further action, Anand refused to comment.Thirumavalavan said Karnataka’s refusal to release water despite repeated directions from Cauvery Water Regulatory Committee (CWRC) and Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) has severely affected kuruvai cultivation in Tamil Nadu, casting uncertainty over the upcoming samba season in the Cauvery delta.Citing CWRC chairman Vineet Gupta, the VCK leader said Tamil Nadu should have received 27.2tmcft of water by July 27 under Supreme Court’s 2018 verdict. However, just about 0.6tmcft had reached the interstate point, Biligundlu, by then. Against the stipulated 36.4tmcft to be released between June 1 and July 27, Karnataka released barely 10% (3.6tmcft), leaving a cumulative shortfall of around 33tmcft.
