Tamil Nadu farmers seek meeting with President over Kaveri water dispute

The National South Indian Rivers Interlinking Farmers Association has requested a meeting with President Droupadi Murmu on September 4 in Delhi. The organization, led by state president P. Ayyakannu, intends to submit a memorandum demanding ₹1 lakh crore in compensation from the Karnataka government.

The demand stems from allegations that Karnataka has failed to release Kaveri river water in accordance with constitutional and Supreme Court directives. Farmers in Tamil Nadu claim this failure has caused severe droughts affecting large, small, and marginal farmers alike. Ayyakannu stated that compensation is necessary to prevent farmer suicides.

This dispute coincides with a critical decline in water levels across Tamil Nadu. Due to a weak southwest monsoon and high temperatures, the 90 reservoirs monitored by the Water Resources Department contain only 37.05% of their total capacity. This is less than half of the water levels recorded during the same period last year, raising significant concerns regarding irrigation and drinking water availability.