Protests intensified in Cauvery basin districts on Wednesday as Karnataka began releasing 15,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu, as per the directive of the Supreme Court.
Agitation has also intensified other parts of the State as protesters blocked several roads and forced schools and colleges to shut down.
The release of water began on Tuesday night itself, from the Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) dam, amid tight security.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters this morning: “Despite severe distress and hardship, we will release water to Tamil Nadu as directed by the Supreme Court. With heavy heart, we have to follow the apex court’s directive though it is very difficult in the prevailing distress situation.”
Meanwhile, police imposed prohibitory orders around the Kabini reservoir in Mysuru, in view of the Kabini Hitharakshana Horata Samithi’s plan to lay siege to it.
Bus services hitThe State-run KSRTCsuspended bus services on Wednesday as well. As the busy Bengaluru-Mysuru highway lay blocked, the district administration made arrangement to divert buses plying between the two cities via the Malavalli-Kanakapura road.
KSRTC officials in Mysuru said they were operating services on a limited fleet as buses had not reached Mysuru from Ramanagaram and Mandya. Meanwhile, traffic movement across the border with Tamil Nadu at Chamarajanagar was also curtailed by the police.
As road transport remained disrupted for the second day, the railways witnessed an increase in passenger traffic. Train services between Mysuru and Bengaluru and other parts of the State and neighbouring Tamil Nadu remained normal on Wednesday.