The Congress Core Group on Friday discussed the Cauvery dispute issue amid indications that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will take a final call on notifying the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal by month-end.
Water Resources Minister Harish Rawat is learnt to have briefed the Congress Core Group, which includes the prime minister and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, that it is legally binding for the government to notify the award.
While Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar has written to the prime minister requesting him against notifying the award, the state's counsel has told the Supreme Court that it has no objection to the notification of the award,
Rawat is understood to have told the party leadership.
Sources said the prime minister is likely to take a final call on the issue by the end of January.
The Centre has already informed the apex court that since the draft notification is pending with the law ministry, it is likely to take a final decision on the issue by January 31.
Tamil Nadu, on the other hand, has been pressing for an early notification of the final award.
The Centre had informed the Cauvery water sharing states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry that it would notify the award by December end, but the self-imposed deadline was missed as the issue is still pending the scrutiny of the law ministry.