Cauvery row: Farmers, troops back on streets

MANDYA: Security personnel, who were resting in their barracks after the protests and tension of the past two weeks, were again requisitioned to take guard at sensitive spots in Mandya, mainly in areas where Tamil speaking people reside. Besides, security was tightened in and around the KRS reservoir on Tuesday. Mandya distict is again on the edge over the Cauvery dispute, with hundreds of farmers and youths hitting the streets to protest the SC order.Many protesters swarmed on to the Mysuru-Bengaluru highway in Mandya, Srirangapatna, Maddur, Gejjalagere and other places and disrupted vehicular traffic.Rastaroko protests were reported in Pandavapura, KR Pete and other places, with activists vociferously condemning the court for its tough order against Karnataka.
Meanwhile, G Made Gowda, president of Mandya Zilla Raita Hitaraksana Samiti, said farmers would relaunch a fierce agitation if water was released to Tamil Nadu. “The state government must stick to its decision not to release water to Tamil Nadu. If water is released from our reservoirs, we will launch a fierce agitation,“ he warned. He advised the state government to explore constitutional measures to protect the interests of the state.