: Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam on Tuesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to advise Kerala to stop work on the construction of two check dams across the Bhavani river. He pointed out that Tamil Nadu’s concurrence was not obtained for the check dams and the matter was sub-judice.
Recently, opposition leaders, including DMK leader M.K. Stalin, had cited reports that Kerala was constructing the check dams across Bhavani, one of the main tributaries of Cauvery, and drawn the attention of the State government to it.
In his letter, Mr. Panneerselvam urged the Centre to advise Kerala not to take up any project or works until the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) and the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) came into force and judicial references were finally settled.
Referring to reports that check dams were being constructed at Thekkuvattai and Manjikandi across Bhavani by Kerala, he said this had led to great anxiety among the people of Tamil Nadu who were dependent on water from the Cauvery basin for irrigation and drinking water purposes.
Any attempt to construct check dams across Bhavani without disclosing the details of the schemes and obtaining the concurrence of Tamil Nadu would be a violation of the order of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT). It would affect the natural flow of Bhavani and consequently diminish the flows to Tamil Nadu, the Chief Minister pointed out.
Following the CWDT’s final order delivered on February 5, 2007, Karnataka and Kerala filed Special Leave Petitions (now Civil Appeals) before the Supreme Court challenging it. Tamil Nadu too filed a Special Leave Petition on certain aspects of the final order of the Tribunal.
Even as it held that the Civil Appeals were maintainable, the Supreme Court had said the appeals would be heard on February 7 this year, and thereafter, on a day-to-day basis.
The CMB has not yet been constituted by the Centre for the implementation of the final order of the Tribunal. Therefore, the entire matter is sub-judice before the Supreme Court, the Chief Minister pointed out.
