Checkdams: Madras HC puts onus on Tamil Nadu govt

The Madras High Court Thursday wondered as to why constructive steps had not been taken in Tamil Nadu by successive State governments for constructing checkdams across rivers to prevent water draining into the sea.

A division bench of the court's Madurai bench, comprising Justices N Kirubakaran and S S Sundar, was hearing a PIL seeking construction of a dam at the foothills of WesternGhats near T Krishnapuram in Peraiyur taluk of Madurai district.

The bench said Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala had been building checkdams, but why was not Tamil Nadu constructing any such dam.

The judges said it was the bounden duty of the Tamil Nadu government to build checkdams and preserve the available water instead of letting it into the sea whenever there were good rains.

The bench sought to know about the number of rivers in the state, including perennial rivers, the volume of water flowing through them and let into the sea, and the number of checkdams constructed, regular dams etc.

It also asked about the proposal to link the rivers in the state, and whether encroachments on the rivers had been removed and posted the case for hearingon March 14.