About the Cauvery
The Cauvery is the sacred river of the Tamil and Kannada-speaking South — called 'Dakshina Bhagirathi' (the southern Ganga), the river's source at Talakaveri in Coorg is among Karnataka's most visited pilgrimage sites. The river flows through the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve — the largest biosphere reserve in South Asia — nourishing the forests of Bandipur, Nagarahole, Mudumalai, and Wayanad that together shelter the world's largest population of Asian elephants. The Cauvery delta in Tamil Nadu is one of India's most productive rice-growing regions, the 'granary of South India' for millennia.
The Cauvery water dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu is India's oldest and most contentious interstate river conflict, dating back to a 1892 agreement between the princely states of Mysore and Madras under British mediation. The dispute over how much water Karnataka can hold in its reservoirs before releasing water downstream to Tamil Nadu has triggered riots and diplomatic crises repeatedly since independence. The river also holds the story of Asia's first hydroelectric power — the Shivanasamudra Falls power station on the Cauvery opened in 1902, sending electricity to Kolar goldfields 150 km away.
Kabini · Bhavani · Arkavathi · Hemavathi · Lakshmantirtha · Moyar