Kerala floods: TN files counter affidavit

The Tamil Nadu government has filed a counter affidavit before the Supreme Court denying the allegations of mismanagement, levelled by the Kerala government with regards to the release of water from Mullaperiyar dam.

It filed the counter affidavit before the apex court on August 24 in response to the affidavit filed by the Kerala government on August 23. The affidavit submitted by Kerala government had blamed Tamil Nadu for ignoring its request to control water flow from Mullaperiyar dam during the floods. It also alleged that the sudden release of the water from the dam is one of the reasons of flooding in Kerala.

The 21-page affidavit, filed by the Tamil Nadu government, a copy available with the ANI, claimed that it was incorrect on the part of the Kerala government to say that the Tamil Nadu had not alerted Kerala on time.

M Selvaraju, who filed the affidavit before the Supreme Court said that Tamil Nadu is fully committed to the safety of people of both Kerala and Tamil Nadu, living downstream from the Mullaperiyar dam.

The affidavit further stated that the designed Maximum Water Level (MWL) of Mullai Periyar Dam is 155 ft. for which the safety was examined and found to be safe by the Supreme Court.

It further claimed that Tamil Nadu government had given enough warnings to the Kerala government officials as and when the water crossed the level of 136 ft in the Mullaperiyar dam.

The Tamil Nadu government also said that the Dam Safety Organisation officials of the Central Water Commission, along with the members of the two states had inspected the Mullaperiyar dam on August 4 and found the overall condition of the dam satisfactory. It also stated that the Chairman of the Sub Committee under the Supervisory Committee inspected the dam on August 15 and found everything in order.

Mullaperiyar dam is located in Kerala's Idukki district near Thekkady on Periyar River, but is maintained and managed by the Tamil Nadu government.