Dominance Rule in Game Theory: Resolving the Cauvery River Basin Conflict Through Strategic Equilibria

Abstract: This paper applies the dominance rule from game theory to analyze the Cauvery River Basin dispute, where Karnataka (upstream) and Tamil Nadu (downstream) compete for water. By modeling the conflict as a non-cooperative game, we demonstrate Karnataka’s dominant strategy of restricting water flow, leading to a suboptimal Nash Equilibrium that harms downstream agriculture. Institutional interventionspenalties, compensation, and iterative governanceare shown to realign incentives, replacing dominance-driven conflict with Pareto-efficient cooperation. The framework offers scalable solutions for transboundary resource disputes, emphasizing adaptive policies and equitable equilibria.