Author: Harish Upadhyay
Publication: MSN.com
Date: September 26, 2016
URL:   http://www.msn.com/en-in/news/newsindia/to-indias-cauvery-dispute-israel-offers-an-unusual-solution/ar-BBwCQsU?li=AAggbRN

Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have been at loggerheads over sharing the Cauvery water. A decades old dispute has aggravated this year due to deficit southwest monsoon. But experts have also criticised the practice of growing water intensive crops in an area seeing alarmingly deficit rainfall year after year.

Farmers in Karnataka grow Sugarcane while downstream in Tamil Nadu farmers grow paddy and both crops require water in excess. The practice of growing millets has been slowly abandoned by the farmers over the past four decades. But the state government has not shown the will to educate farmers to change the cash crops.

Showcasing its might in a recent event in Bengaluru, Israel seemed to propose a solution to solve the crisis.

At "Open a door to Israel", the consulate general of Israel displayed the country's technological advancement in micro drip irrigation, a practice which claims to reduce the use of water for irrigation by 50 per cent. Israelis also claim that combining the technique with fertilization, the yield of sugarcane can be increased by 133 per cent.

Israel, once known for its arid terrain, has made a tremendous turn around. It now claims to be a water surplus country. This has been achieved largely due to their rapid strides in technologies like drip irrigation, waste water recycling and desalination. The same techniques have also been adopted by drought hit countries like Paraguay and parts of United States like California.

At "Open a door to Israel", the consulate general of Israel displayed the country's technological advancement in micro drip irrigation.

The Israeli government says they have already proposed to the Indian Government to help the country with water conservation projects.

Shalvi, the deputy chief of mission, consulate general of Israel, told NDTV that they are ready to share their expertise through already established centres of excellence.