Mullaperiyar row: Expert panel to submit report today

New Delhi, Jan 2 (ANI): A technical team constituted by a Supreme Court-appointed empowered committee will on Monday submit its report on the safety of the disputed century-old Mullaperiyar Dam.

The two-member technical panel comprising CD Thatte and DK Mehta had recently surveyed the dam site after Kerala expressed concerns over safety in the wake of recent tremors in the area.

Earlier, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa took strong exception to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) forming a team of experts to draw up a contingency response plan for the Mullaperiyar Dam, saying it was nothing but "succumbing to the subterfuge" of Kerala.

In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, she expressed her "shock" over the NDMA under his chairmanship constituting a team of experts to formulate a Contingency Response Plan including "inundation and submergence models" in the event of possible scenarios like earthquakes and floods.

"This is nothing but succumbing to the subterfuge of the government of Kerala and to present a fait accompli to the Supreme Court and the Empowered Committee constituted by it," she said.

Kerala and Tamil Nadu are locked in a dispute over the dam located in Idduki District. The dam and the river are located in Kerala, but the dam is controlled and operated by Tamil Nadu. The safety of the dam has been a matter of concern and a point of dispute between the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

While Tamil Nadu, the custodian of the structure, wants to increase the water level in the reservoir, Kerala has been insisting that it be reduced from the current 136 feet to 120 feet.

Kerala apprehends that this past-expiry date dam could crash and cause untold destruction in the state.

Kerala is arguing for the construction of a new dam at Mullaperiyar in place of the existing one, which is being opposed by Tamil Nadu. (ANI)