By IANS
New Delhi : The chief ministers of Kerala and Tamil Nadu are likely to discuss the construction of a new dam to replace the more than 100-year-old Mullaperiyar dam in Kerala when they meet here on Dec 19, Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan said Monday.
According to Achuthanandan, who met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the chief ministers could discuss the contentious dam issue when they come to attend the National Development Council meeting here on that day.
The Kerala chief minister said that during a meeting with Manmohan Singh, which was also attended by state Water Resources Minister N.K. Premachandran, the prime minister had said he could facilitate a meeting between the two southern chief ministers on Dec 19.
The prime minister had expressed his concern over the dam, which though in Kerala irrigates areas in Tamil Nadu, and said, “safety is our prime concern”, Premachandran told IANS.
The two Kerala leaders had come to meet the prime minister to discuss the dam issue and urge that the central government reinstate the rice allocation for the state as it was facing an acute rice shortage. Achuthanandan said the central government had cut down the state’s rice allocation by 82 percent.
He also asked the prime minister to expedite a special package for FACT, a state-owned fertiliser company that is facing trouble due to the high prices of sulphuric acid.
Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been involved in a legal battle and a war of words over the Mullaperiyar dam, located in Idukki district, with Tamil Nadu protesting Kerala’s opposition to raising the water height to 142 feet.
Kerala wants the reservoir water to remain at 132 feet, saying the dam is old and unsafe.
Tamil Nadu is also opposed to construction of a new dam.