Supreme Court allowed Tamil Nadu to carry out Small Maintenance Works on the Mullaperiyar Dam

The Supreme Court of India on 23 July 2012 allowed Tamil Nadu government to carry out repair and maintenance works on the Mullaperiyar dam. However, the court instructed that the repairing and maintenance work is to be carried out in the presence of the Superintending Engineer of Kerala and an independent member nominated by the Chairman of the Central Water Commission.

A five-judge Constitution Bench of Justices DK Jain, RM Lodha, Deepak Verma, CK Prasad and Anil R Dave gave the verdict after hearing an application filed by Tamil Nadu government for the court’s permission to carry out certain maintenance works.

Mullaperiyar Dam

The Mullaperiyar Dam is constructed on the Periyar River in Kerala. The dam was constructed by the British government in 1895, to feed the water need of Tamil Nadu. The dam is located 2889 feet above mean sea level on the Cardamom Hills of the Western Ghats in Thekkadi, Idukki District in Kerala.
The height of the dam is 176 feet while, its length is 1200 feet. The Periyar National Park is located around the dam's reservoir.

What is the issue?

The past few years have witnessed a bitter disagreement between the Tamil Nadu and Kerala government over the safety of the dam. Kerala has openly expressed its disagreement over the safety of the dam as it argues that dam is 117 years old and has well outlived the average life span of a dam that stretches out between 50 to 60 years. In the face of a disaster, it will be extremely difficult to prevent the loss caused by the breakage of dam. The rising concern over the safety of dam is mostly due to the insufficient safety maintenance and monitoring of the dam.

The Kerala government argues that if the dam breaks, as it can in the event of a disaster like earth quake, it will cause a massive loss of lives and property. On the contrary, the Tamil Nadu government contends that if the dam cease to work it will create a severe water scarcity in five districts of the state, leading to a draught in the region.