Kochi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought response from the centre on the delay in constitution of the National Committee on Dam Safety despite Parliament passing the Dam Safety Act in 2021, media reports said.
While hearing a petition related to the safety of the 130 year old Mullaperiyar dam in Kerala, a three member bench expressed dismay over the central government sitting over the matter.
The Kerala government informed the court that the Centre had done nothing after the Dam Safety Act was passed.
Petitioner Mathews J Nedumpara has sought review of apex court’s orders over the safety of the dam on the ground that if water damages the dam, it would affect 50 to 60 lakh people living downstream in Kerala.
In 2014, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Tamil Nadu allowing it to raise the water level to a height of 142 feet. The court had also constituted a supervisory committee to assess its safety from time to time.
While Tamil Nadu claimed the dam was safe, Kerala said it was high time to decommission it.
Even as the dam and its catchment area are within Kerala, the water from its reservoir is used by Tamil Nadu and is the lifeline of its five districts.
The 176 feet Mullaperiyar Dam is a masonry gravity dam constructed between 1887 and 1895 by British engineer John Pennycuick backed by an agreement with the ruler of Travancore and Madras Presidency to divert water towards east to Vaigai river in Tamil Nadu.
Photo credit: facebook
