CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai on Saturday accused Chief Minister M K Stalin of forgoing the state’s interests for political gains by deliberately ignoring inter-state disputes with Kerala and Karnataka and hosting them for a discussion on a topic (delimitation) which has ‘no rational basis’.
With the CM chairing the first Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting on Saturday to discuss the issues in the impending delimitation exercise, BJP leaders and cadres held a black flag protest across the state.
Speaking outside his residence, Annamalai reiterated that the state will not lose the 7.17% representation (parliamentary seats) it currently holds and that such ‘political theatrics’ was organised by the DMK to divert public attention from far more pressing issues plaguing the state.
“The Mullaiperiyar issue is an ongoing one wherein the current communist government in Kerala does not even allow Tamil Nadu engineers to visit and repair the baby dam. If the Shenbagavalli dam issue is rectified, lakhs of agricultural lands in Tenkasi can be irrigated,” Annamalai said.
Without discussing Tamil Nadu’s issues, Stalin has invited the Kerala CM (Pinarayi Vijayan) to discuss an ‘artificial issue’, which has no rational basis, instead, he added.
“Mekedatu is a big issue. Although the centre has said that nobody can construct a dam without the permission of the lower riparian states, Karnataka Deputy CM D K Shivakumar has gone ahead aggressively saying that he does not need Tamil Nadu’s permission to build a dam. They (TN) have invited him,” Annamalai said, adding that Shivakumar’s presence at the meeting was part of his plans in plotting the downfall of Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah.
“He wants to portray himself to be a pan-India leader and that Siddaramaiah was a regional leader, only limited to Mysuru and Bengaluru (parts of Karnataka),” he claimed.
Safety panel examines Mullaiperiyar Dam
Theni: A visual examination of the Mullaiperiyar Dam has been completed, and there are other studies pending to examine the dam’s strength, National Dam Safety Authority Chairman Anil Jain said in Thekkady on Saturday.
A new seven-member supervisory committee led by Anil Jain inspected the Mullaiperiyar Dam, baby dam, shutter areas, and also some of the safety aspects and the maintenance. The committee members then held discussions with the engineers from both states at the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Nature Education and Research in Thekkady.
Replying to a question on the safety of the Mullaiperiyar Dam, Anil Jain said, “We examined the dam visually. Currently, the water level is very low. There are other studies to examine the dam. A supervisory committee conducted a site visit. A discussion was also held as per the terms of reference given by the Ministry of Jal Shakthi.”