THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala Government on Wednesday said it is keen on having total control of the proposed new dam at Mullaperiyar, an issue over which the State and Tamil Nadu have locked horns for long.
�Kerala�s firm position was that it should have the right of construction, ownership, operation and maintenance of the new dam, while giving water to Tamil Nadu on the basis of a clear cut agreement,� the Water Resources Minister, Mr N.K. Premachandran, told the State Assembly during Question Hour.
The Minister reiterated Kerala�s position that a new dam alone in the place of the 113-year-old existing reservoir was a lasting solution to the long-pending dispute with Tamil Nadu. This is the model followed in the case of Siruvani dam (from which wate r is released for Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu), he said.
He said Kerala has made its position clear in the Supreme Court, which recently constituted an empowered committee headed by the former Chief Justice of India, Mr Justice A.S. Anand, on the safety aspects of the existing Mullaperiyar dam.
Tamil Nadu has been strongly opposing the construction of a new dam downstream of Mullaperiyar river, contending that repairs to the existing reservoir would suffice. Kerala however, feels that the structure is unsafe, posing a potential threat to people living downstream.
On the ruling DMK�s decision that Tamil Nadu should not nominate its representative to the Apex Court appointed panel, he said the neighbouring state should have its nominee to resolve the tangle
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
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