Decide on max water degree in Mullaperiyar dam: SC to panel

By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the supervisory committee on the Mullaperiyar dam to resolve on the suitable water degree to be maintained, contemplating the issues concerning the security of the 126-year-old dam.

The court docket, which directed the authorities in Kerala and Tamil Nadu to carry discussions, requested the supervisory committee to tell it of the choice by Wednesday. A bench comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and CT Ravikumar requested Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati to get directions from the panel.

“An issue has been raised that there is an immediate need to specify the water level in the dam. If there is immediate need or not, take instructions, understand the anxiety of the parties, and the committee has to take a decision, keeping in mind the risk factor involved,” stated Justice Khanwilkar.

The bench was listening to two writ petitions filed by non-public individuals from Kerala searching for pressing directives to limit the water degree within the dam, which is being managed by Tamil Nadu. The petitioners submitted that due to heavy rain final week, the water degree within the dam has gone up and folks’s lives are at stake.

“We don’t know what risk factors are involved. The committee needs to decide this. We can’t decide water levels. This has to be decided immediately in a day or two,” stated Justice Khanwilkar. The court docket additionally noticed that everybody has to behave critically and sincerely because it issues individuals’s lives. 

“This is not a political arena where you can debate. We direct all the authorities concerned to interact on urgent basis and the committee to take a decision on the maximum water level to be maintained in the dam,” the bench stated Advocate G Prakash, representing Kerala, identified the Supreme Court order, dated August 24, 2018, fixing the water degree within the dam at 139ft throughout floods. He requested the court docket to concern the same order contemplating the present scenario.

Discharge from dam greater than the influx: TN

Advoca te V Krishnamurthy, showing for Tamil Nadu, instructed the bench that the water degree within the dam was 137.2 ft at 9am on Monday. He stated as per the sooner judgments, Tamil Nadu is entitled to retailer water as much as 142 ft within the dam.

Meanwhile, senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, showing for Kerala, requested the bench to cross an order directing Tamil Nadu to take care of water degree at 137 ft until the following posting date.

In response, the Tamil Nadu’s lawyer submitted that the discharge from the dam was higher than the influx and that there was much less chance of rain in Idukki district as per the India Meteorological Department’s forecast for the following 5 days.

He additional stated the chief minister of Kerala has written to his Tamil Nadu counterpart on the problem and the scenario is being carefully monitored.

CM warns of motion towards these spreading panic T’Puram: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has warned that authorized motion shall be taken towards those that create panic over the Mullaperiyar dam by social media. Pinarayi stated presently, there was no trigger for concern over the 126-year-old dam. 

High-level meet todayT’Puram: Water Resources Minister Roshy Augustine stated a gathering shall be held on Tuesday to debate the scenario. Central Water Commission chief and extra chief secretaries and chief engineers involved from Kerala and TN will attend.