Tamil Nadu farmers stage protest by blocking rail tracks demanding Cauvery water from Karnataka

Farmers in Tamil Nadu blocked railway tracks on Tuesday as they sought release of Cauvery river water from neighbouring Karnataka.

The farmers, who have already sown paddy in nearly 80,000 acres of land in the Thiruvarur district, said that the water level in the Mettur reservoir is dwindling day by day, endangering crops.

Protesters from the Thanjavur, Thiruvarur, and Nagapattinam regions disrupted train services at the Thiruvarur railway station.

The protest was led by PR Pandian, the leader of the Tamil Nadu Cauvery Farmers Organisation.

PR Pandian said, "The Modi Government is simply watching farmers struggle with the cultivation of 15 lakh acres of sambha and 16 lakh acres of kuruvai crops. This can’t be allowed anymore. The Karnataka government is refusing to accept



the Cauvery Water Management Authority’s suggestions. The Karnataka government is passing legislation illegally against the Supreme Court order.”

“The Modi government is not condemning this and is not caring about Tamil Nadu farmers. The Union government should make the Karnataka government provide water and should not allow the construction of a dam in Mekedatu”, Pandian added.

He also sought Rs 10,000 compensation per acre for farmers who have lost their crops due to lack of water.

The sharing of water from the Cauvery river which flows through both states has long been a point of contention between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

The Cauvery Water Management Authority on Monday asked Karnataka to continue releasing 5,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu for another 15 days.