India, Aug. 5 -- The crisis between Tamil Nadu and neighbouring Karnataka over the sharing of water from the Cauvery is not, by any means, a new one.Common people in both states have recently found themselves again mired against the clamour of heated, accusatory political posturing and an evasiveness that clouds consensus and derails any approach towards meaningful dialogue on the matter, which is a shame, really, considering that both state governments have remained quite consistent with their stances over the years.

'How can we hold back water?" observed Karnataka chief minister DK Shivakumar recently, when asked about the release of water from the Kabini dam, which reached Tamil Nadu early on Tuesday. Shivakumar's argument that the Me...