Mullaperiyar: Cumbum waiting to erupt again

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Kerala government’s ‘obstructionist attitude’ in carrying out grouting works in Mullaperiyar reservoir has revived fears of massive people’s protests in Cumbum valley, the direct beneficiary of the dam water.

Even as the public works department commenced the work of grouting the six holes drilled on the dam to enable the Supreme Court-appointed empowered committee to assess its structural stability, a week ago after initial obstacles caused by Kerala, it faced more hurdles when Kerala forest officials denied entry to the cement-laden truck bound for the dam site and sent it back on Tuesday.

Though the empowered committee had given permission to close the holes which has been recorded in the minutes of a meeting attended by Kerala engineers too, the Congress government in Kerala assured to cooperate only after chief minister Jayalalithaa cautioned that TN police would be deployed at the dam site if the work was not allowed to be undertaken.

Happy over CM’s approach, farmers of Cumbum valley, who have been closely monitoring each and every development with regard to the dam, have now threatened to revive the protests if Kerala refuses to allow transport of cement to the dam through its forest area at Vallakadavu.

K.M. Abbas of the Five Districts’ Periyar-Vaigai Irrigation Farmers’ Association, said, “We are planning to block Kerala’s official vehicles to show our objection if its government continues to cause obstructions to close the holes in the dam.

Its intention is to make the dam weak and disturb the good relationship shared by the people of both the states.”

He said his association has written to Union forest and environment minister Jayanthi Natarajan asking her to issue due instructions to forest officials of the Periyar Tiger Reserve through which the loads are carried to the dam site.

The Tamil Nadu PWD Senior Engineers’ Association is also likely to file a petition in the Madras high court. R.V.S.Vijayakumar of the association said, “This incident (blocking transport of cement) is yet another proof to Kerala’s intransigence.

Citing this incident, we will soon be filing a miscellaneous petition in the HC seeking a direction to immediately deploy TN police at the dam site.

” Meanwhile, the PWD is likely to resume grouting work with available cement stock on Friday as the shifting of the equipment from baby dam to main dam was done on Thursday. Official sources said, two holes have been closed so far.

ex-pwd chief asks tn to exercise rights

Tamil Nadu does not need the Kerala government’s permission to carry out maintenance work on the Mullaperiyar dam, claims former chief engineer of the public works department (PWD), Tirunelveli and district secretary of the Senior PWD Engineers Association S.S. Gunabalan.

Responding to the action of Kerala officials blocking the transportation of cement to fill the holes drilled into the dam by the state to check its durability, the association advised the government to exercise its authority in the matter instead of writing complaining letters to the Prime Minister.

“Why should we pay for the Kerala police posted at Mullaperiyar dam, when we have a legal right over it for 999 years? We should have our own police at the dam so that the PWD officials don’t have to ask permission from the Kerala police to enter it,” Mr Gunabalan said.

While the association welcomed empowered committee’s statement on safety of the dam, it was skeptical about its suggestion that Kerala should build a new dam on the site.

“Recommending the construction of a new dam is beyond the purview of empowered committee which was constituted only to study how strong it was,” it contended.