Kerala, Tamil Nadu to get more time to support claim on Mullaiperiyar

A five-member empowered committee set up by the Supreme Court (SC) to look into Mullaiperiyar river dispute between Tamil Nadu and Kerala, has decided to grant the two states two more weeks to furnish more documents in support of their claims.

The committee met in New Delhi on Monday and decided to accept the request from Kerala’s representative for the extra time. The committee will meet again on October 15 in New Delhi.

“The meeting on October 15 will review the fresh documents submitted by both the states. It is also likely to decide on a date to visit the disputed site,” Tamil Nadu (TN’s) representative, former SC judge AR Lakshmanan, told reporters after the meeting.
With Kerala under the influence of north-east monsoon and Tamil Nadu also experiencing unseasonal rains, the visit will be held in December, sources said.
Tamil Nadu has been strongly opposing a proposal by Kerala to construct a new dam at the site as it feels that would harm TN’s southern region.
The SC panel consists of former SC chief justice AS Anand, two central representatives — former water resources department secretary CD Thatte and former engineer of central water commission DK Mehta and a representative each of the two states.
Kerala nominated former SC judge KT Thomas as its nominee, while TN has another former SC judge AR Lakshmanan as its member.
Karunanidhi wanted the Centre to intervene and resolve all inter-state river water disputes. “The best solution can be arrived at if the Centre intervenes and initiates dialogue among CMs of the respective states,” Karunanidhi had said. But the CM later changed his stand and decided to nominate Lakshmanan to the committee.