Farmer organisations step up protest for Cauvery water

Cauvery Hithrakshana Samithi president G Madegowda, on Wednesday, said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah should immediately stop releasing water from the KRS dam to Tamil Nadu.

He said this while addressing the protesters during an indefinite stir by Raitha Sangha and Hasiru Sene and other farmer bodies near Sir M Visvesvaraya statue here, demanding the release of water to the canals.

The chief minister has failed to safeguard the interests of the farmers of Cauvery basin, Madegowda said and warned that the government will have to face serious consequences if it continues to release water to Tamil Nadu at the expense of the local farmers.

With Madegowda joining the agitation, the movement has gathered more steam, MLA K S Puttannaiah said. He added that the the authorities concerned should release water to canals to fill the lakes and ponds.

Nationalised banks should waive farm loans and advance fresh loans, he demanded.

Semi-nude agitation
Meanwhile, members of a farmers’ federation staged a protest on the Mysuru-Bengaluru highway wearing chaddis (knicker). They formed a human chain on the highway, disrupting vehicular traffic for a while. Women, with brooms in their hands, took out a protest march to the Deputy Commissioner’s office.

In Nanjangud taluk, the police prevented a group of farmers from laying siege to the distribution canals originating from the Kabini reservoir. The farmers were demanding the release of Kabini water to Hullahalli and Ramapura canals. The police detained the agitating farmers and released them after a while.