Current Issues and Analysis 27th June 2026

The Tungabhadra River Water Dispute

Recent Development

In a significant example of cooperative federalism, a rare consensus was reached among Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana during a joint meeting to inaugurate 33 new spillway gates at the Tungabhadra Dam. In response, the Union Government has proposed a High-Level Committee to amicably resolve the decades-old water-sharing dispute.

Geography of the Tungabhadra River

• Origin: Formed by the confluence of the Tunga and Bhadra rivers at Kudli (near Shivamogga, Karnataka). Both tributaries originate in the Western Ghats (Varaha Parvatha & Gangamoola).
• Course: Flows for 531 km through Karnataka, defines parts of the Karnataka–Andhra Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh–Telangana borders, and joins the Krishna River at Sangameswaram (Andhra Pradesh). Its waters eventually enter the Bay of Bengal at Hamsaladeevi.
• Significance: It is a major perennial, right-bank tributary of the Krishna River and an agricultural lifeline for the Deccan Plateau.

Infrastructure & Key Issues

• Tungabhadra Reservoir Project: Commissioned in the 1950s near Hosapete (Vijayanagara district, Karnataka). It irrigates over 16.38 lakh acres across the three states.
• Siltation Crisis: Heavy siltation over decades has severely depleted the dam’s original 134 TMC storage capacity, causing downstream deficits.
• Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme (RDS): An interstate project with a 143-km canal serving all three states. Due to infrastructural decay, Telangana can only draw 5–6 TMC out of its 15.9 TMC post-bifurcation allotment.
• Upper Bhadra Conflict: Andhra Pradesh filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court (2023) against Karnataka’s upstream Upper Bhadra lift irrigation scheme, fearing it will choke downstream flows into reservoirs like Srisailam.

Constitutional & Legal Framework

• Jurisdiction: Water management belongs to the State List (Entry 17), but the regulation of inter-state rivers falls under the Union List (Entry 56).
• Adjudication: Article 262 empowers Parliament to resolve inter-state river disputes and bar Supreme Court jurisdiction, executed via the Inter-State River Water Disputes (ISRWD) Act, 1956. Water sharing was originally governed by the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT-I, 1969).
• Precedent: The SC’s Cauvery Judgment (2018) declared that inter-state rivers are national assets, ruling out exclusive state ownership and reinforcing equitable distribution.

NCERT Introduces 1975 Emergency in Class 9 Textbooks

Context

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has officially included the history of the 1975 National Emergency in its Class 9 textbook, Understanding Society: India and Beyond. The Emergency was imposed on June 25, 1975, under the pretext of “internal disturbance” and lasted until March 1977.

Core Provisions of National Emergency (Article 352)

• Grounds for Proclamation: War, External Aggression, or Armed Rebellion.Note: The 44th Amendment Act (1978) replaced the vague term “internal disturbance” with “armed rebellion.”
• Proclamation Flexibility: The 38th Amendment Act (1975) allowed the President to issue multiple simultaneous emergency proclamations on different grounds.
• Territorial Extent: Can cover the entire country or be restricted to specific regions (enabled by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976).
• Parliamentary Safeguards (Post-44th Amendment):
  • Must be approved by both Houses within 1 month (originally 2 months) via a special majority.
  • Approved status lasts for 6 months, extendable indefinitely through 6-monthly parliamentary reviews.
• Revocation Process: Can be revoked by the President at any time without Parliament’s nod. Alternatively, the Lok Sabha can force a disapproval vote (requires a written notice by 1/10th of its members to trigger a special sitting within 14 days, passed via a simple majority).
• Judicial Review: While the 38th Amendment initially barred judicial review, the 44th Amendment reversed it. In the Minerva Mills case (1980), the Supreme Court confirmed that an emergency can be legally challenged if it is mala fide (bad faith) or perverse.

Textiles Summit 2026

Overview

Organized by the Ministry of Textiles, the two-day Textiles Summit 2026 brought together state governments, industry leaders, and academia to draft a National Textile Export Roadmap aimed at hitting India’s USD 100 billion export target by 2030.

Key Themes & Strategic Directions

• Sustainability & Traceability: Emphasized alignment with international green standards, circular economy practices, digital product passports, closed-loop recycling, and municipal-state partnerships for textile waste management.
• Global Competitiveness: Urged the domestic industry to capitalize on recent Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), shift focus heavily toward Man-Made Fibres (MMF), and elevate “Brand India” quality.
• Localized Production: Revived the “Districts as Export Hubs” initiative to eliminate information gaps at the district level and boost local manufacturing capabilities.

Economic Snapshot of India’s Textile Sector

BRICS Space Agencies Meeting (Bengaluru)

Summary

Hosted by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) under India’s 2026 BRICS Chairship, the heads of space agencies from Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and new members (including UAE, Egypt, Iran, and Ethiopia) convened in Bengaluru.

Key Highlights & Focus Areas

• The “BRICS Space Economy”: India proposed building a collaborative space economy to unlock investment, commercial entrepreneurship, and sustainable development.
• Sustainability & Infrastructure: Deliberated on debris-free space missions, strengthening the existing BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation, and establishing a formal BRICS Space Council.
• Core Collaboration: Planned deeper shared initiatives in disaster response, Earth observation data exchange, and technical capacity building.
• Showcasing “NewSpace” India: India spotlighted its expanding private space sector, space tech startups, and landmark milestones like Chandrayaan-3, Aditya-L1, and the Gaganyaan human spaceflight program.
• The Ultimate Goal: Transitioning BRICS space relations from simple coordination to active co-creation and co-development of space assets.