Mekedatu Project Reignites Interstate Water Dispute
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Mekedatu Project Reignites Interstate Water Dispute
- The Mekedatu project, a proposed ₹9,000-crore initiative by Karnataka, aims to impound 67.16 thousand million cubic feet (TMC ft) of water for drinking and power generation.
- The long-standing dispute over the project intensified recently, with the Tamil Nadu Assembly passing a unanimous resolution on June 19, 2026, opposing its construction.
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The Mekedatu project, situated on the Cauvery River in Karnataka, has become a significant point of contention between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Karnataka proposes to construct a balancing reservoir near Mekedatu, approximately 100 km from Bengaluru. The project, estimated to cost ₹9,000 crore, is designed to address Bengaluru’s growing demand for drinking water and generate 400 MW of hydroelectric power. Karnataka maintains that the project will utilize its allocated share of Cauvery water and will not negatively impact the downstream flow to Tamil Nadu.
However, Tamil Nadu has consistently opposed the project, arguing that it would impede the natural flow of water and violate the allocations made by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) and subsequent Supreme Court judgments. The state fears that the reservoir would allow Karnataka to store a larger quantity of water upstream, thereby reducing the water available for irrigation and drinking in Tamil Nadu’s delta regions.
The dispute has a long history, with the possibility of a project at Mekedatu being examined as early as 1948. The Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal in 2007 allocated specific shares of water to riparian states, and the Supreme Court in 2018 modified this award, increasing Karnataka’s share by 14.75 TMC, including 4.75 TMC specifically for Bengaluru’s drinking water needs.
In November 2025, the Supreme Court dismissed Tamil Nadu’s petition challenging the project as “premature,” stating that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) was still under scrutiny by expert bodies like the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) and the Central Water Commission (CWC). Despite this, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly unanimously passed a resolution on June 19,