Mullaperiyar water level will be raised to 152 ft; DMK will make dream of Tamil people become reality, says Minister

KUMILY: Raising the water level in the Mullaperiyar dam to 152 feet is the dream of the people of Tamil Nadu and it will become a reality under the DMK government, said Tamil Nadu Local Government Minister I Periyasamy. The minister was responding after assessing the rain damage in Theni district. Based on the Supreme Court verdict, the Tamil Nadu government has the right to carry out maintenance work in Mullaperiyar dam. He added that the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has decided to discuss this with the chief minister of Kerala during his visit to Vaikom.

Tamil Nadu recently got permission from Kerala for the maintenance work in Mullaperiyar. Permission was given following official application submitted by Tamil Nadu. Although it was thought that the issue would be discussed at Vaikom, where the chief ministers of both states meet, a solution was found in this regard through official-level measures. The additional chief secretary of the state issued the permission and issued the order. A few days ago, M Sand lorries brought by Tamil Nadu for maintenance to the Mullaperiyar dam were stopped at the Vallakadavu forest check post.

Kerala gave permission with seven conditions. The conditions include that no new construction should be carried out, Minor Irrigation (MI) Division Executive Engineer or his designee must be present, forest rules must be followed while transporting construction materials, and no other materials should be brought to the dam site.