In a bid to draw the attention of the State government to Mullaperiyar dam row, farmers’ associations in five southern districts had decided to observe a fast in Madurai on March 15, said Vivasayigal Kootamaippu leader P.R. Pandian here on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters, he said when the Supreme Court-appointed sub-committee had inspected the dam in December 2021 and expressed satisfaction over the safety of the dam, there was no need for the Kerala government to appoint officers at the dam site since as per the agreement the administration should be with the Tamil Nadu government.
The Tamil Nadu government, instead of remaining silent, should spell out its stand, which alone would clear apprehensions among the farmers. The Kerala government, he claimed, created confusion in the minds of the people of two States over the safety of the dam.
OPS’ appeal
In a statement, AIADMK coordinator O. Panneerselvam has appealed to the Tamil Nadu government to clarify on the reported developments with regard to the dam. According to media reports, top PWD officials in Kerala had inspected the dam last week and proposed to post their engineers there.
The exact truth behind such reports should be explained to the farmers by the State government without delay. The CPI (M), a DMK ally, was ruling Kerala. The DMK government here should be more faithful to the people of Tamil Nadu than to its partner in Kerala, he stressed.