Chennai ,August 20(HS): Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Thursday sought Tamil Nadu’s cooperation for the Mekedatu reservoir project, asserting that it would benefit farmers in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry as well as Karnataka.

Addressing the 31st Southern Zonal Council meeting in Mahabalipuram, Shivakumar said the Cauvery water dispute should be resolved through dialogue and cooperation. He said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had also stressed the need for Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to settle the issue during an informal conversation before the meeting.

“Every drop of water from the Mekedatu project will help farmers in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. Help us help you,” Shivakumar said while concluding his address.

Maintaining that rivers did not recognise political boundaries, he urged southern States to move beyond water-sharing disputes and adopt an approach based on equity, transparency and mutual respect. Karnataka would place its positions on the Krishna, Upper Bhadra, Mekedatu and river-linking projects before the council, he added.

Shivakumar also called for safeguards to protect the South’s political representation during any delimitation of parliamentary constituencies. States that had controlled population growth in line with national policy should not be penalised, he said.

He urged the council to support freezing the existing number of Lok Sabha seats and ensuring that the South’s representation was not reduced numerically or proportionately. The Women’s Reservation Act, he said, should be implemented within Parliament’s existing strength without linking it to the census or delimitation.

On fiscal federalism, Shivakumar said the five southern States, comprising about 20 per cent of India’s population, contributed nearly 33 per cent of its GDP. He sought restoration of Karnataka’s tax share, claiming the State had lost an estimated ₹65,000 crore over six years.

He also sought an AIIMS in Raichur, the Bengaluru–Mumbai high-speed rail corridor and a special package for Kalyana Karnataka.

Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman