Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi has accused Kerala of "creating obstacles" and demanded deployment of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to guard the reservoir.
Intensifying the war of words over the Mullaperiyar dam issue, Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi has accused Kerala of "creating obstacles" and demanded deployment of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to guard the reservoir.
"With a view to preventing Kerala government from continuing to create obstacles, it would be better to deploy CISF personnel to guard the dam instead of Kerala police," he said.
The dispute between the two states has intensified in recent days after the Centre allowed Kerala to conduct a survey for construction of a new dam to replace the existing 113-year-old reservoir across the inter-state Mullaperiyar river.
Tamil Nadu had knocked the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the move by neighbouring state but the plea was rejected.
Writing in his party's mouthpiece,'Murasoli', Karunanidhi detailed a series of events between 2006 (when the supreme court ordered the storage in the dam should be increased from 136 to 142 feet) and 2009 (when Tamil Nadu officials were denied access to the dam area by the Kerala officials or unidentified persons damaged portions of the dam wall).
He said he requested prime minister Manmohan Singh in 2007 to provide CISF security to the dam.
"In December 2006, some unknown persons damaged the parapet wall following which I wrote to the prime minister seeking the deployment of CISF," he said. Among other such "obstacles" Kerala Forest and Irrigation officials had earlier this year "prevented PWD officials of Tamil Nadu" from taking up maintenance work on the dam which was brought to his notice by Theni District Collector, Karunanidhi said.
The issue was raised at a meeting of the two states convened by the Centre later, he said.
On many occasions, while Tamil Nadu officials were not allowed entry to the dam by their Kerala counterparts, Kerala authorities visited the dam without informing Tamil Nadu officials, Karunanidhi said.
In fact, Kerala police had even allowed "unknown persons," to visit the dam area and film it, he said.
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