NEWDELHI: As Mullaperiyar dam controversy reached Parliament on
Monday, Kerala reiterated its demand for building a new dam in the Delhi
power corridors.
The demand for a
new dam along with reducing the water level of the dam to 120 feet was
raised by the delegation from Kerala, comprising Water Resources
Minister P J Joseph and Revenue Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan,
holding a series of meetings with top Government functionaries,
including Home Minister P Chidambaram and Water Resources Minister Pawan
Kumar Bansal.
“We have made it
clear that Kerala is not against giving water to Tamil Nadu. But we want
a new dam as the security of our people is at risk. We gave all the
details about the recent earth quakes in the region and conveyed that
reducing the water level is pertinent to the safety and security of the
people,” said Revenue Minister Thiruvanchoor Radakrishnan after meeting
Water Resources Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal.
According to him, the minister was ‘sympathetic’ to Kerala’s demands.
“We hope that the Centre will extend all its support to Kerala’s demand
for a new dam by giving the necessary environmental clearance,” he said.
The issue was raised in Parliament earlier by Kerala MPs cutting
across party lines trooping into the well of the Lok Sabha with
placards and banners. Even Congress MPs joined in.
The
ministers also met Harish Salve who represents the State in the Supreme
Court on the matter. The empowered committee appointed by the SC will
meet on December 5. Harish Salve has apparently advised the state to
pass a resolution in the Assembly to build a new dam citing security
concerns. But the government will only take decision following further
discussions, sources said. According to the ministers, at the current
juncture Kerala is not concerned about issues relating to control of the
new dam and the tariff on water used in power generation by Tamil Nadu.
“Our concern is only with the lives of our people. Nothing more,
nothing less,” said the ministers.
The
Kerala delegation will be meeting the PM on Tuesday to raise the state’s
concerns. According to sources, senior Congress leader and Defence
Minister A K Antony had met the PM after the party core committee had
apparently given assurances on an amicable settlement in the
Mullaperiyar issue.
Earlier in the
day, Kerala MPs, cutting across party lines, staged a dharna in the
Parliament complex seeking the PM’s immediate intervention in the issue.
MPs from Congress, Kerala Congress and CPM went on a dharna in front of
the Gandhi statue at the complex holding placards- ‘Water for Tamil
Nadu, Safety for Kerala’. They said the 116-year-old dam is in danger
and the region is witnessing a number of quakes.
Kerala
Congress MP Jose K Mani, who gave an adjournment motion notice in the
Lok Sabha to discuss the issue, along with P T Thomas and Anto Antony
also went on a hunger strike.
The
Kerala MPs were visited by various leaders, including Rural Development
Minister Jairam Ramesh and RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad.
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