Thaindian News

Chennai, Dec 9 (IANS) DMK president and former Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Karunanidhi Friday urged the state government to call an all-party meet to discuss the Mullaperiyar Dam issue.

Speaking to reporters after the party’s executive committee meeting here to discuss the dam issue, Karunanidhi said: “The actions of the central and the state governments are not satisfactory in respect of the Mullaperiyar Dam issue.”

“The state government should talk to all parties and get their support on the issue. The talks should show that we are united in our stand,” he added.

“Calling an all-party meeting will help in this regard,” he said.

Queried whether there should be a special session of the Tamil Nadu assembly as was done in Kerala, Karunanidhi said: “We will watch the actions of the Kerala government.”

To PMK founder S.Ramadoss’ statement that the DMK government did not take action in raising the water level in the dam to 142 ft after the apex court permitted it, he said: “There is no point in blaming each other.”

The former chief minister also ruled out an out-of-court settlement with Kerala.

The DMK will hold a protest fast Dec 12 from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. in all major cities in the state on the Mullaperiyar Dam issue. On Dec 15, a human chain protest will be held in Theni, Madurai, Sivaganga, Dindugal, Ramanathapuram districts.

Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been at loggerheads over the dam, built under an 1886 accord between the then Maharaja of Travancore and the erstwhile British Raj.

While it is located in Kerala, its waters also serve Tamil Nadu.

Tamil Nadu wants the dam’s storage capacity to be increased by raising the dam height from 136 feet (41.5 metres) to 142 feet (43 metres) as per the Supreme Court’s order.

Kerala wants a new dam as it would be under its control and has been raising the issue of earthquake threat to the over a century old masonry Mullaperiyar Dam.