Deccan Chronicle 14.08.2009
Bridge over troubled Cauvery waters
Chennai
Aug. 13: Several rounds of heated haggling by top political leaders and seasoned bureaucrats of the two states, at times under the captaincy of the prime minister of the day, could not achieve it. But now with some simple statue diplomacy, chief ministers M. Karunanidhi and B. S. Yeddyurappa hope to soften the long-raging belligerence between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over the sharing of Cauvery waters and the construction of the Hogenakkal water project.
While Mr Karunanidhi expressed confidence that the water disputes would be resolved in a spirit of brotherhood, Mr Yeddyurappa stretched his optimism even further saying that Karnataka’s disputes with other neighbours, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, too could be sorted out in a similar way. The octogenarian lovingly referred to his Kannada counterpart as thambi during the Bengaluru ceremony unveiling the statue of Tamil savant Thiruvalluvar on August 9 and the latter responded with equal warmth calling the DMK stalwart as his elder brother, perianna.
“I do not have a brother but today the Karnataka chief minister has filled that place,” declared Mr Karunanidhi. “We have not merely erected the statues of Thiruvalluvar in Bengaluru and Sarvajna in Chennai. The real historical event is our creating this statue of unity and friendship between the people of the two states.” Thambi Yeddyurappa said much the same, both at Bengaluru and Chennai.
Newsmen were persistent in quizzing the two CMs whether the statues would heal the water disputes. They were justifiably guarded in responding. Yes, they hope that good neighbourly relations would now blossom but no, they did not discuss the disputes during these statue ceremonies. But then, the spirited declaration in the concluding part of Mr Karunanidhi’s Chennai speech could lift the optimist’s spirit — ‘This annan and thambi will strive to create conditions to enable the people of the two states to live united and enjoy their rights.’
Only on August 6, Yeddy rushed to Delhi to pressure the Centre to get Tamil Nadu halt its Hogenakkal project which is a Rs 1,400 crore scheme for feeding the parched Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts of Tamil Nadu with Cauvery water from Hogenakkal but the Karnataka government has been insisting that the water source lies within that state.
