Thiruvananthapuram:
The new year has brought no good tidings for Tamil Nadu and Kerala, who are warring over the Mullaperiyar dam and its water. Located in Kerala, the 116-year-old dam is controlled by Tamil Nadu thanks to an old and somewhat bizarre lease that remains in effect.
The Supreme Court has appointed an Empowered Committee to hear both states, and to inspect the dam. Both states have presented irreconcilable solutions. Kerala maintains that the dam is structurally unsafe and is in danger of collapse. So it says it will pay for a new dam to be built, after which it wants a say in how the water is distributed. Ideally, Kerala wants a committee that includes representatives of both states and the centre to determine water-sharing. Currently, the Mullaperiyar dam services farmers in the drought-prone regions in and around Madurai in Tamil Nadu.
That is the secret reason for Kerala's opposition to the dam, argues the Tamil Nadu government. It says various experts have decreed that the dam poses no danger to those living near it. Because a new dam is not needed, the Tamil Nadu government says, there is no need to change who controls its water.
The Empowered Committee will submit its report and recommendations to the Supreme Court in February.