SC gives Centre three months to form T.N.­ Karnataka water disputes tribunal

SC gives Centre three months to form T.N.­ Karnataka water disputes tribunal

Subject: Polity

Context: The Supreme Court in December 2022 gave the Union government three months to constitute an Inter-State River Water Disputes Tribunal to resolve the dispute of Pennaiyar river.

About the issue

• The Supreme Court gave the Centre three months to constitute an Inter-State River Water Disputes Tribunal to resolve the dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over constructions in Pennaiyar river.
• Tamil Nadu had filed an original suit in 2018 against Karnataka’s work on check dams and diversions’ structures in the river.
• Tamil Nadu had argued that the flowing water of an Inter-State river was a national asset, and no single State can claim exclusive ownership of it and the utilisation of Pennaiyar river waters by Karnataka is a detriment to the people of Tamil Nadu.

Inter-State River Water Disputes:

• Article 262 of the Constitution provides for the adjudication of inter-state water disputes.
• Under this, Parliament may by law provide for the adjudication of any dispute or complaint with respect to the use, distribution and control of waters of any inter-state river and river valley.
• Parliament may also provide that neither the Supreme Court nor any other court is to exercise jurisdiction in respect of any such dispute or complaint.
• The Parliament has enacted the two laws, the River Boards Act (1956) and the Inter-State Water Disputes Act (1956).
• The River Boards Act provides for the establishment of river boards by the Central government for the regulation and development of inter-state river and river valleys. A River Board is established on the request of state governments concerned to advise them.
• The Inter-State Water Disputes Act empowers the Central government to set up an ad hoc tribunal for the adjudication of a dispute between two or more states in relation to the waters of an inter-state river or river valley.
• The decision of the tribunal is final and binding on the parties to the dispute.
• Neither the Supreme Court nor any other court is to have jurisdiction in respect of any water dispute which may be referred to such a tribunal under this Act.

Amendment to the 1956 Act

• An amendment was enacted to the Inter-State Water Disputes Act in 2002 which brought about a few changes such as:
• The tribunal has to be constituted within one year of the request.
• The tribunal should give the award within 3 years and in some exceptional cases, within 5 years.
• If the award is not immediately implemented, the concerned parties can seek clarification within three months.
• The tribunal award will have the same force as an order or decree of the Supreme Court. The award is final and above the SC’s jurisdiction.
• However, the states could still approach SC through Article 136 (Special Leave Petition)
• Private persons could approach the SC under violation of Article 21 (Right to Life).

Pennaiyar River:

• The South Pennar River is also known as Dakshina Pinakini in Kannada and Thenpennai or Pennaiyar in Tami
• Bangalore, Hosur, Tiruvannamalai, and Cuddalore are the important cities on the banks of South Pennar river.
• This is the second longest river in Tamil Nadu, with a length of 497 km, after the Kaveri.
• The river is severely polluted by industrial waste as it flows through major industrial areas in the eastern suburbs of Bangalore, the industrial parks of Hosur and Chengam.
• The river originates in the Nandi Hills in Karnataka and flows through Tamil Nadu before emptying into the Bay of Bengal.
• The river is dry for the most part of the year. Water flows during the monsoon season when it is fed by the south-west monsoon in the catchment area and the northeast monsoon in Tamil Nadu.