The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Union government to constitute a tribunal within one month to resolve the long-standing inter-state Pennaiyar river water dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, in accordance with statutory provisions of the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.
The Bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Nath held that in the absence of an agreed settlement, no legal impediment subsisted to the Central government issuing a notification in the Official Gazette for the establishment of a dedicated Water Disputes Tribunal.
The Apex Court was today apprised that multiple rounds of inter-governmental negotiations facilitated by the Union of India had failed to yield a consensual resolution between the contesting states.
The breakdown of negotiations, notwithstanding the Court-mandated constitution of a Negotiation Committee under Section 4(1) of the 1956 Act, prompted judicial intervention to activate the tribunal mechanism contemplated by Parliament.
The Apex Court directed that the plaint in Original Suit No. 1 of 2018 be returned for presentation before the tribunal to be constituted, in accordance with the statutory scheme governing inter-State river water disputes.
The original suit had been instituted by the State of Tamil Nadu under Article 131 of the Constitution, invoking the Supreme Court’s exclusive original jurisdiction in disputes between States.
The grievance centred on the alleged construction of check dams and diversion structures by Karnataka across the Pennaiyar river, which Tamil Nadu contended had materially impaired its equitable share of river waters.
The river, which traverses Karnataka and Tamil Nadu before flowing into the Union Territory of Puducherry, was asserted to be governed by the principles of equitable apportionment and reasonable utilisation, as recognised in inter-state river water jurisprudence.
During the previous proceedings, the Court had directed the Ministry of Jal Shakti, through its Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, to constitute a fresh Negotiation Committee to pursue an amicable settlement. The Union government was directed to place a report on the outcome of the consultative exercise within a stipulated timeframe. The judgment had been reserved on December 12, 2025.
The Centre subsequently filed an affidavit, stating that while a proposal for constituting the Pennaiyar Water Disputes Tribunal had been forwarded to the Cabinet Secretariat, the Union Cabinet had not yet taken a final decision on the matter.
Taking note of the delay and the failure of negotiations, the Court invoked its constitutional authority to ensure compliance with the legislative intent underlying the Act.
The ruling aligned with the settled precedent, including State of Karnataka v. State of Andhra Pradesh and State of Tamil Nadu v. State of Karnataka (Cauvery disputes), wherein the Supreme Court had consistently underscored that once a water dispute was referable to a tribunal under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under Article 131 stood impliedly excluded.
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