Centre won’t take sides on Mullaperiyar issue: Antony

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The defence minister, Mr A.K. Antony, said on Saturday that the Centre would not take sides in the Mullaperiyar row.

While talking to mediapersons, he said that the Centre would, however, continue its efforts to bring both Kerala and Tamil Nadu to the negotiating table to find an amicable solution to the issue.

He said he had spoken to the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and the union minister for water resources, Mr Pawan Kumar Bansal, on the need to find a solution to the issue.

Under the federal system only the Supreme Court had the power to give orders to resolve the issues between states, he reminded. The union minister appealed to the people of Kerala and Tamil Nadu to maintain cordial relationship and said that Mullaperiyar should not become a cause for a fight between the states.

A special financial package would be given to Kerala as in the case of West Bengal to help improve the state’s economic situation. “The Congress-led UPA government has always helped the state government in the last seven years,” he said.

Mr Antony said the proposal to shift the Territorial Army 122 Infantry Battalion from Kannur to Kozhikode district had been suspended. The Indian Coast Guard Academy being developed near Azhikkal here would be completed in 2014-15, the minister said.

Mild tremor in Idukki

Some areas of Idukki district experienced a mild tremor measuring about 2.4 on the Richter scale on Saturday. The tremor, which occurred at 3.45 a.m., created anxiety in the minds of the people as it was reported from areas close to the 116-year-old Mullaperiyar dam. The tremor was felt at Upputhura, Kulamavu, Moolamattom and Cheruthoni areas. No casualty or property loss has been reported. The area had recorded as many as 27 mild earthquakes since July this year.