Cauvery River Authority to meet on September 19

The Cauvery River Authority headed

by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would meet in New Delhi on

September 19. The Tamil Nadu government has received a communication

from the Ministry of Water Resources, Secretary Dhruv Vijai

Singh that the seventh meeting of the CRA will be held on

September 19,State PWD Secretary M Saikumar said in a release. The meeting would be held at the Prime Minister's office,

he said and requested the participation of all member-states. The official announcement from the State Government was to

clarify media reports that the meeting would be held on

different dates. Water Resources Minister P K Bansal had said yesterday

that the government was in touch with all the Chief

Ministers.. "and everybody would be there (at the meeting). In

all likelihood, it will be 19th or 20th of this month." The decision to convene the meeting of the Authority comes

after the Supreme Court pulled up PMO officials on the issue. The last time the Authority met was on February 10, 2003

headed by then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee. The Authority was

set up by the Centre in 1997 with far reaching powers to

ensure the implementation of the Interim Order. Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are locked in a battle for over

two decades to share the water of river Cauvery. The Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal had in 2007 submitted

its report, awarding water share to all the states

concerned.