The Supreme Court of India on Monday, August 17, 2026, issued a directive to the Karnataka government, mandating compliance with the Cauvery Water Management Authority's (CWMA) order regarding the release of Cauvery river water to neighboring Tamil Nadu. This order requires Karnataka to release 12,000 cusecs of water daily from August 12 to August 27, 2026. The bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, heard a plea filed by Tamil Nadu, which alleged that Karnataka was not adhering to the CWMA's directions and that the allocated water was not reaching its farmers.
Karnataka's counsel, Senior Advocate Shyam Divan, countered Tamil Nadu's claims, stating that the presented data was "extremely incorrect" and that the state had in fact released more water than initially mandated between July 29 and August 10. He further clarified that while the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) had initially directed 3,500 cusecs for 15 days until August 11, the subsequent CWMA order increased this to 12,000 cusecs daily from August 12. Divan acknowledged that the inflow into Karnataka's reservoirs was low but assured the court that the state was making efforts to comply and had even exceeded the 12,000 cusecs mark by August 17.
The Supreme Court, while noting Karnataka's statistics, decided to adjourn the matter for a week, fixing the next hearing for August 24, 2026, to assess the updated status of water releases. The ongoing dispute highlights the challenges in water-sharing during what Karnataka has termed a "distress year" due to deficient rainfall in the Cauvery catchment areas. This issue continues to be a point of contention between the two southern states, impacting agricultural activities and inter-state relations.
