IT cos. play it safe in uneasy Bangalore

BANGALORE: Several IT companies here today asked their employees to return home early following the verdict of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal, which awarded 419 tmc ft of water to Tamil Nadu and 270 tmc ft to Karnataka.

The IT capital of India was feeling an uneasy calm and security was beefed up in the city. Security was been tightened in places bordering Tamil Nadu.

The verdict, which came this afternoon around 1 p.m., also allocated 30 tmc ft of Cauvery water to Kerala and 7 tmc ft to Puducherry, the other two parties in the dispute.

Following the dispute, companies in the Whitefield area of the city decided to close early as a precautionary measure.

In Electronic City, Aztec, iGate and SAP were among the firms that closed early today. Huawei Technologies on the Airport Road here also asked its employees to go home as soon as possible.

Earlier, the Tamil Nadu State Road Transport Corporation suspended its buses to Karnataka. Private bus services have also been suspended in Bangalore.

Several schools in the city announced closure as a precautionary measure.

Tamil television channels were off the air in many places in Bangalore. Cinema halls were closed and traffic was less compared to normal working days.

Reports said of agitation in Mandya on Bangalore-Mysore road. Farmers protesting the verdict were reported to have blocked the Maddur highway. Protests were reported from various parts of Bangalore city.

A pro-Kannada outfit has called for a bandh on Tuesday.

Armed battalions were deployed in all sensitive areas, such as Bangalore, Mysore, Mandya and Chamarajnagar.

The Bangalore police on Sunday had taked 130 persons into preventive custody in the light of the Tribunal order on Monday. 18,000 police personnel, including those from other States were deployed at various places in the city.

In Tamil Nadu, security was beefed up around Mettur Dam.

Meanwhile, Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy called for an all-party meeting following the Tribual’s verdict to chart out future course of action.

A Tamil federation in the city appealed to prime minister Manmohan Singh and local officials to provide protection to Tamils living in Bangalore and in other parts of the State.

The Karnataka State secretary of the AIADMK VA Pugazhendi asked chief minister to provide adequate security to Tamils and their property. Tamils comprise about 25 per cent of the Bangalore population.

Earlier, an interim court in 1991 had ordered Karnataka to release 205 tmc of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu. The riots against Tamils that followed this order left more than 18 people dead.

An 1892 agreement has been the bone of contention between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. When this agreement lapsed in 1974, Karnataka wanted it to be renegotiated, while Tamil Nadu argued for the continuation of the pre-independence agreement.

This led to a standoff between the two States and the Cauvery Disputes Tribunal was set up in 1990.

On an average, about 740,000 million cubic feet of water flows into Cauvery annually.

Tamil Nadu argued it needed three quarters of this, while Karnataka wanted two-thirds of the water.

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