The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday unanimously passed a resolution condemning Karnataka government’s “unilateral” move to construct the Mekedatu dam on the Cauvery river, reported The Indian Express.

The resolution also urged the Centre not to consider Karnataka’s Rs 1,000 crore-dam project in Ramanagara district, and deny the required clearances.

The resolution was moved by Water Resources Minister V Durai Murugan, who said that Karnataka did not obtain the necessary clearances from other states in the Cauvery river basin and the Centre, reported The Hindu.

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The resolution noted that Karnataka’s decision to construct the dam is in violation of the 2007 order of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal, and the 2018 Supreme Court order, reported The Indian Express.

Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday and thanked all the MLAs for supporting the resolution.

“Let’s stand together...We will protect the rights of Tamil Nadu and the welfare of our farmers,” he said in a tweet.

The dispute

The distribution of Cauvery water has been a long-standing dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. On June 1, 2018, the Centre notified the formation of the Cauvery Water Management Authority in compliance with a Supreme Court order.

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The Centre’s move to notify the board came weeks after the Supreme Court accepted its draft scheme on sharing of the river water. The court had asked the government to notify it in the official gazette before the onset of the monsoon.

The Centre submitted the draft on May 14, 2018 after several delays that prompted the court to issue warnings. In February 2018, the court had asked the Centre to set up the management board within a month, and later extended the deadline to May 3.

In December, the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a resolution against the Centre’s permission to Karnataka to prepare a detailed project report for its proposed dam in Mekedatu area across the Cauvery. The resolution said the proposal went against the Supreme Court order that states upper riparian states must not implement any project without the consent of lower riparian states.