Tamil Nadu chief-minister Edapadi K. Palaniswami has issued a statement expressing his disappointment that the Supreme Court’s verdict has reduced the quantum of water to be released by Karnataka to meet Tamil Nadu’s agricultural and other needs.

Delivering a resounding verdict while dealing with the review petitions filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala, the apex Court ruled yesterday that Cauvery River can’t belong to any particular State as its ‘property’.  It also said that Tamil Nadu be given 177.25 TMC water annually, reducing it from 192 TMC as proposed by the Cauvery River Water Disputes Tribunal a decade ago.

Referring to this, Edapadi’s said in a statement that “Tamil Nadu has more right to claim Cauvery river water and it is indeed disappointing that the quantum of water has been reduced from 192 TMC to 177.25 TMC. The verdict, however, has many positive aspects for Tamil Nadu.”

“It’s a huge morale-boosting victory for the Govt. of Tamil Nadu and its people that the apex Court has directed the Centre to set up a Cauvery Management Board within six weeks’ time. It’s also a welcome verdict that the Court has referred to Cauvery as a ‘national property’. We shall look into the verdict with the help of legal experts and take further necessary action,” the statement concluded.