DMK treasurer M.K. Stalin on Tuesday demanded that the State government pass a resolution in the Assembly condemning the Andhra Pradesh government for raising the height of check dams across Palar river.
Leading a protest against the government’s failure to stop its AP counterpart from raising the height of check dams across Palar, the Opposition leader said Palar, which ran for 222 km in the State, was an important source of water for agriculture and drinking water for Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts.
Noting that the AP government had taken up the work for the last six months, he said, “The AIADMK government has been sleeping all this time and could not stop them (AP) from raising the height of check dams. The Chief Minister did not take steps to meet her Andhra Pradesh counterpart to resolve the issue.”
Questioning the delay in acting on this issue, Mr. Stalin said, “The Tamil Nadu government hastily filed a case in the Supreme Court soon after we announced a protest.”
He referred to a decision taken at a meeting of the Central Water Commission on August 26, 2008 that no new dam should be constructed across river Palar.
Mr. Stalin also said that Ms. Jayalalithaa, when in power in 2006, had filed a case in the Supreme Court opposing AP government’s move to construct a check dam across Palar.
“Except filing the case, she did not do much to expedite the case or pave way to arrive at a solution. When the DMK came to power, Mr. Karunanidhi instructed us to meet the AP CM to take up the issue as they were trying to construct a check dam at Ganeshapuram,” he noted.
With the verdict in the SC case still pending, he said the AP government’s move amounts to contempt of court. “The dam was already five feet high, and they have raised it by 12 to 20 feet. This is against the law. They have also violated the 1892 agreement on river sharing that covers 15 rivers including Palar,” he added.
Mr. Stalin claimed that AP government had taken over Kanakanatchiamman Temple near Pullur panchayat. He criticised the CM for not participating in the inter-State council meeting on July 16. DMK senior leader Durai Murugan was present.
