As Cauvery protests escalate, state awaits CRA meet

NEW DELHI\MANDYA\MYSORE: As protests intensified on Friday -- the third day of water release to Tamil Nadu -- Karnataka is still awaiting an appointment with Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee for an immediate Cauvery River Authority (CRA) meeting.
With 3.75 tmcft already on its way to Mettur from the Kabini dam, as per the Supreme Court order, Chief Minister S.M.Krishna told reporters at Delhi airport: ``We cannot be expected to release water to TN indefinitely.''''
Krishna -- who rushed to Delhi with Water Resources Minister H.K. Patil and Law Minister D.B. Chandre Gowda -- said CRA had to be convened ``immediately'''' to assess water availability in Cavuery basin reservoirs as against Karnataka''s irrigation and drinking water requirements. ``I am making a last ditch attempt to impress our case before the PM leaves for his nine-day foreign tour,'''' he admitted.
On TN CM Jayalalithaa''s stand that the Cauvery Monitoring Committee meeting on Saturday was itself ``fishy,'''' and her statement that Cauvery water had still not reached TN, Krishna merely said: ``It takes two days for water to reach Mettur.''''
Away from the political heat of the capital, farmers courted arrest at the KRS and Kabini dams, threw furniture and files out of the executive engineer''s office and locked the doors of the Water Resources Department office. Over 140 agitators were arrested and later released at H.D. Kote town.
Road traffic between Bangalore and Mysore was paralysed for the second day, with farmers, students and others squatting on the highway. Bangalore-bound Tippu Express and Shatabdi from Chennai were stopped at the Mandya station for over 30 minutes.
Vehicular movement came to a complete halt in T. Narsipur taluk, which is entirely dependent on Kabini waters. Farmers leaders said a massive protest rally would be held at the Command Area Development Authority offices in Mysore on Saturday.
In Mandya, two separate rallies led by Film star and Congress MP Ambaraish and former Congress MP G. Made Gowda marched to the Deputy Commissioner''s officer to submit protest memoranda. A relay hunger strike has started, with MLC M.S. Siddaraju and other JD(S) leaders participating, while a Mandya district bandh has been called on Saturday.
Keragodu, Koppa and Killara towns held bandhs on Friday. KSRTC buses between Mandya and Mysore were cancelled. All schools, central and state government offices in the district remained closed.
Made Gowda -- President of Mandya District Raitha Hitharakshana Samithi --mooted the idea of ``KRS Chalo,'''' where one lakh people gather at the dam to bring pressure against release of any more water. All trains between Bangalore and Mysore would be stopped on Sunday, he added.
Ambarish told a rally that Krishna would be ready for ``any sacrifice'''' to safeguard farmers'' interests. ``If the PM does injustice to our farmers, the Central Government will not survive,'''' he warned.