Supreme Court poser on Mullaperiyar at 139 ft

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday  directed the sub-committee of the National Crisis Management Committee to meet on Friday morning to take a call on whether the water level in Mullaperiyar dam can be reduced from 142 ft to 139 ft so that people downstream did not live in constant fear.

A Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Ms. Indu Malhotra, who took up the application filed by Russel Joy on an urgent basis, asked the committee to assess the dam storage in the context of more water received than the quantum of water released.

Earlier, counsel G. Umapathy for Tamil Nadu submitted that the present water level is 142 ft. It can only draw 2,300 cusecs (cubic foot per second) of water from the reservoir for irrigation purposes but the current inflow is more than 20,508 cusecs. The remaining water has to be drained to the larger Idukki reservoir, which is already close to its storage capacity. 

The Bench after hearing Additional Solicitor-General P.S. Narasimha for the centre and counsel Mohan Katarki for Kerala said needless to say that the committee should consider the possibility of reducing the water level to 139 ft. The panel should also consider a plan of action for release of water and in what manner the plan could be conveyed to the people.  

The ASG informed the court that the NCMC, which met on Thursday morning, had been meeting regularly and monitoring the situation on an hourly basis. For proper reservoir management, a committee has been constituted chaired by the Chairman of Central Water Commission and chief engineers of both the states. The committee is to meet again  on Friday  to assess the situation.

Taking note of the submissions, the Bench in its order further directed that there must be a disaster management plan, which should be implemented forthwith. It said “both Tamil Nadu and Kerala should implement the plan of action forthwith as action speaks much faster than what words can convey.”     

Appearing for the petitioner, counsel Manoj George submitted that the Mullaperiyar dam has 13 shutters, including three old ones. All of them have been opened up to 1.5 metres to drain the excess water. They can be opened up to 16 m. As much as 10,000 cusecs of water is being released from the reservoir to the Idukki reservoir since Wednesday night. 

He said authorities had warned that the outflow could be increased up to 30,000 cusecs, aggravating the unprecedented flood situation in Kerala. Describing the situation as grave and serious, counsel said the worst fears of the petitioner who lives downstream the reservoir have come true since Kerala is reeling under the worst floods as on date since the great flood of 1924. 

He said incessant rains have been mercilessly lashing down on the state for the last two weeks and the Kerala government has proclaimed a red alert in all the 14 districts. Approximately, about 100 people have lost their lives, and more than 1,50,000 people have been rendered homeless and moved to relief camps, according to government records. 

Mr. George wanted a direction to notify the disaster management plan regarding Mullaperiyar dam with immediate effect to alleviate the fear and threat of life of the people living downstream of the dam. 

He said it was a matter of record that of 39 dams in Kerala, 33 dams have been opened due to heavy rains and that as a result , the entire state has been cut off.