NEW DELHI: The Supreme court on Wednesday started hearing the Mullaperiyar dam case. The top court is hearing several pleas over safety concerns about the 126 years old Mullaperiyar dam which has been a longstanding dispute between the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The Mullaperiyar dam was built in 1895 on the Periyar river in Kerala's Idukki district. During the course of the hearing, Kerala said that dam safety is the main concern and the safety depends on the height of water.
"There is more volume of water which is pressing against the dam resulting in less space. If the water level keeps rising, it has to be discharged or released. Seepage is the best indicator of the performance of the dam." The counsel added.
The state of Kerala in a fresh affidavit filed in the Mullaperiyar dam dispute case has sought a fresh review of the safety of Mullaperiyar by an independent panel of experts.
The state has also sought for the creation of a comprehensive Dam safety review procedure in accordance with the guidelines for Safety Inspection of Dams, January 2018. The court will continue hearing the arguments on Thursday.
“The terms of reference of the study and details of the agencies for conducting the tests should be shared to the party States and approved by the Supervisory Committee. All tests and investigations should be conducted to check the hydrological, systematic, and structural safety of the dam. The committee should ensure that this exercise is carried out with the participation of the officers of Kerala. The test reports and their findings should be finalised by the supervisory committee and also shared with the state of Kerala. It should be ensured that the study is completed within a definite time-frame.” The affidavit further reads.
In January, the top court had asked the two states to approach the supervisory committee for matters relating to the release of water or water management of the dam. The court had said that everyday management issues should not come to the court and should be taken up before the committee.
The Kerala government had earlier told the apex court that “no amount of rejuvenation” can perpetuate the dam and there is a limit to the number of years one can keep dams in service through maintenance and strengthening measures. It had said the only permanent solution for removing the “eternal threat owing to the safety concerns” of the dam and for protecting the safety of a large number of people living downstream of Mullaperiyar dam is to build a new dam in the downstream reaches of the existing dam. The Kerala government had urged the court that the proposal to fix the upper rule level of the Mullaperiyar dam at 142 feet as formulated by Tamil Nadu may be avoided.
In its response to the affidavit filed by Kerala, the state of Tamil Nadu had said that “repeated assertion” of Kerala and petitioners from there in the pleas filed from time to time seek to decommission of the existing dam and construction of a new dam, which is “wholly impermissible” in the light of the apex court verdict on the safety of the dam. “The dam has been found to be hydrologically, structurally, and seismically safe,” Tamil Nadu had said.
(With agency inputs)