Cauvery: Ayyakannu seeks tough action against Karnataka

Tiruchy: The Desiya Then Indiya Nathigal Inaippu Vivasayeegal Sangam’s state president and veteran farmers leader P Ayyakannu, who made peace with the BJP in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, on Sunday demanded that the Central government dismiss the JD(S)-Congress government in Karnataka for failing in its “constitutional duty” to release Cauvery waters to Tamil Nadu as directed by the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) and the Supreme court.

Speaking to reporters here, Ayyakannu thanked the Centre for announcing a plan to link the Godavari-Cauvery rivers and for extending the yearly financial assistance of Rs 6,000 to all farmers under the ‘PM Kisan Scheme’ to benefit 14 crore more farmers.

After its State general body meeting held here on Sunday, he said he has also decided to meet the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami shortly and appealed to him to write off all the cooperative farm dues of all farmers of the state, who are suffering a severe drought.

Ayyakannu said he had also decided to meet Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, Union Home minister Amit Shah and the Finance minister, Dr Nirmala Sitharaman, by the end of June along with a farmers delegation, to press them to write off all agriculture loans including those given by nationalized banks and stop all hydrocarbon extraction schemes in the Cauvery delta region.

Mr. Ayyakannu pointed out that if both the Central and Tamil Nadu Governments failed to accept their just and reasonable demands of the farmers, the Sangam will come out with a nationwide stir in the national capital New Delhi.
He said the meeting also wanted that Idukki district of Kerala should be linked with Tamil Nadu again, and to redraw the boundaries of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in order to solve the Mullaiperiyar water dispute permanently.

It also wanted the Tamil Nadu Government to give up its move to lay 8-lane Salem-Chennai corridor and to de-silt all the water bodies before the rainy season. Among others, Sangam’s legal advisor Muthukrishnan, state treasurer Musiri. N. Karthikeyan, general secretary M C Palanivel, vice-presidents J.P. Krishnan, R. Chandrasekhar, Karur N. Kittappa Reddy spoke.