Kerala MPs hold protest in Parliament House complex on Mullaperiyar dam issue

Kerala MPs, cutting across party lines, today staged a dharna in Parliament House complex seeking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's immediate intervention in the vexed Mullaperiyar dam issue.

The MPs from Congress, Kerala Congress and CPI(M) sat on a dharna infront of Gandhi statue in the complex this morning holding placards--'Water for Tamil Nadu, Safety for Kerala'.

They said the 116-year-old dam is in danger and the region is witnessing a number of quakes.

Kerala Congress MP Jose K Mani said he has given a notice of adjournment motion in Lok Sabha to discuss the issue.

Activists of various parties and resistance groups in Kerala have been holding protests over delay in endorsing their demand for building a new dam at Mullaperiyar, over which the state has been locked in a tiff with neighbouring Tamil Nadu.

Increase in inflow into the reservour above the maximum permissible storage level of 136 feet has heightened fears about the safety of the dam among people in the area and adjoining districts.

Various groups in Kerala had been persistently arguing that the dam posed a threat to lives and properties of over 3 million people in Idukki, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts.

As an urgent measure, they want the water level to be lowered to 120 feet.