No change in Kerala's stand on new dam at Mullaperiyar

There is no change in Kerala's declared stance to construct a new protection dam at Mullaperiyar to ensure safety of its people in downstream areas of the existing 116 year-old dam, which has been found unsafe, Finance Minister KM Mani said here today.

The state budget presented by him in the assembly yesterday had set apart Rs50 crore for initial expense for the construction.

Addressing reporters here, he said the state planned to build the protection dam 1,300 feet beneath the existing dam in keeping with the state's policy of "water for Tamil Nadu and safety for Kerala."

The existing dam posed a serious threat to the life and assets of lakhs of people living downstream in five districts in the state, he said.

Tamil Nadu would continue to get the same quantity of water as it was getting now after the construction of the new dam, Mani said.