AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa’s sustained efforts in the Supreme Court helped to raise the level of the Mullaperiyar dam to 142 feet, MDMK general secretary Vaiko said on Saturday.
At a felicitation function organised by Vaigai and Mullaperiyar farmers’ associations at Usilampatti, near here, he was all praise for Ms. Jayalalithaa. During her stint as Chief Minister, she fought for, and established, the farmers’ rights in the Supreme Court.
What DMK president M. Karunanidhi had failed to deliver as Chief Minister, the AIADMK leader had accomplished, he said. Continuing its commitment to farmers, the O. Paneerselvam-led AIADMK government resolved to raise the level to 152 feet.
Thus, the AIADMK lived up to its promise to farmers, he said. Mr. Vaiko did not spare Kerala politicians. He condemned their “hollow” threats that the dam would not withstand 142 feet of water. “They created a scare among people. What happened to the reservoir when the storage touched the 142-foot mark,” he asked.
“Even at 152 feet, it will be safe and strong,” he said.
When the Mullaperiyar dam row had just settled, another crisis came from Karnataka through its plan to build checkdams across the Cauvery at Mekedatu.
If it was executed, the delta region would become a desert. Similarly, there was an urgent need to protect the Amaravati river basin where Kerala was planning a dam, he said, adding the MDMK would conduct an awareness campaigns in the delta region from December 12 to 22.
