Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti, who held a meeting with representatives of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on Thursday, said she has asked both states to come to a consensus on the Cauvery water-sharing dispute and approach the court with a solution. "I appreciate that both states are trying to find a solution. We have noted their views, which will be sent to the Supreme Court," Bharti said after the meeting.

Bharti further said that the Karnataka government had requested her ministry to form an expert committee to study the availability of Cauvery water for release. She also asserted that she was willing to sit for an indefinite hunger strike if tension escalated along the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border, ANI reported.

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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, who is in hospital, had nominated Public Works Department Minister Edappadi S Palanisamy and a team of other officials to represent the state. At the meeting, Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary P Ramamohana Rao read out a statement on behalf of Jayalalithaa, saying Karnataka had "deliberately and systematically" defied the Supreme Court's orders "with utter contempt", according to PTI.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah led his team. This is the second time he has met Bharti. He had a meeting with the Union minister on September 22 to explain the state's difficulty in complying with the Supreme Court order to release 6,000 cusecs of water.

The Cauvery dispute: A timeline

  • September 5 - The Supreme Court directs Karnataka to release 15,000 cusecs of water from the Cauvery river to Tamil Nadu.
  • September 9 - The top court reduces the quantity of water to 12,000 cusecs, but widespread protests erupt in Karnataka.
  • September 16 - A day-long bandh is held in Tamil Nadu in protest against the violence targeting Tamilians in Karnataka over the water-sharing dispute.
  • September 19 - The Cauvery Supervisory Committee directs Karnataka to release 3,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu every day from September 21 to September 30.
  • September 20 - The court revises the figure to 6,000 cusecs, directing Karnataka to release Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu every day from September 21 to September 27.
  • September 21 - The Karnataka Cabinet decides to not release water from the Cauvery river to Tamil Nadu.
  • September 22 - Chief Minister Siddaramaiah meets Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti in Delhi to explain the state's difficulty in complying with the Supreme Court order.
  • September 23 - The Karnataka legislature passes a resolution that says they cannot release Cauvery water for anything but drinking water purposes in Bengaluru and other towns and villages that fall in the river basin.
  • September 26 - The Karnataka government files a petition in the Supreme Court, seeking a modification to its order from September 20.
  • September 27 - The Supreme Court orders the Karnataka government to release 6,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu for three days, till the next hearing in the matter on September 29.
  • September 28 - Opposition parties in Karnataka said they were against the Supreme Court's order to release 6,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu at an all-party meeting.