Chennai, 19 August 

DMDK chief Premalatha Vijayakanth on Wednesday urged Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to raise the Cauvery water dispute at the Southern Zonal Council meeting in Chennai on 20 August, attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and southern CMs, to secure the state's rightful share for tail-end farmers facing crop distress.

She also demanded that the killing of three Tamil youths in Karnataka forests be raised with Karnataka leaders and Shah, seeking Rs 1 crore compensation, government jobs for victims' families, and a thorough probe. 

Speaking to reporters at the Assembly, Premalatha called for interlinking Tamil Nadu's rivers and restoring Chennai's Cooum and Adyar as waterways like Venice's canals, and welcomed cruise services linking Chennai, Mamallapuram and Puducherry and the water metro project.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Congress president Manickam Tagore said the party "will not allow" Karnataka to build "even a single brick" across Mekedatu, calling it an advertisement and a drama while insisting Cauvery water be released to Tamil Nadu first. He also asks the Modi government to allow Mekedatu.