Govt to decide on transferring powers to Periyar dam supervisory panel

“Chief minister MK Stalin will decide in consultation with the opposition parties in a day or two. The decision to transfer the powers to Mullaperiyar dam supervisory committee is very crucial for the state government as Tamil Nadu has constructed dams in Kerala and is maintaining them,” said Duraimurugan, while responding to a special calling attention motion on the Mullaperiyar dam issue moved by AIADMK, Congress and other parties.

Recalling the Supreme Court’s 2014 order, Duraimurugan said Mullaperiyar supervisory committee was constituted by the Supreme Court to monitor the safety aspects of the dam. Chief secretaries of both Tamil Nadu and Kerala were part of the committee. “All these years, we have been making decisions on storage level of water and operating the dams. If the powers are transferred to Mullaperiyar dam supervisory committee they will dictate terms on release of water, maintenance and storage levels,” said Duraimurugan.

Reading the provisions of the Act, Duraimurugan said that the Dam Safety Act empowers a central and state-level committee to monitor, inspect, operate and maintain all the large dams in the country. Though one year window is given to implement the Act the state has no option but to accept it.