Kerala builds another check dam on Bhavani; Tamil Nadu silent

The neighbouring state managed to finish the task without any hitch as there was not much resistance from the Tamil Nadu Government. Moreover, protests from political parties were confined to just raising their voice against the issue and staging a few road blockades.

The Bhavani originates in The Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu and flows through Kerala for a little more than 20 km before taking a recourse to Tamil Nadu. The river and its tributaries are a major source of irrigation and drinking water for The Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Erode and Tirupur.

The Government of Kerala decided to construct six check dams across the river. Subsequently, in mid-January protests erupted in Coimbatore region when Kerala started constructing the first check dam at Thekuvattai. 

Despite protests and letters written by the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to the Prime Minister and a petition in the Supreme Court, the facility at Thekuvattai was completed in mid-March.

“Since the Supreme Court decided to hear the case along with the Cauvery Management Board case, it did not issue a stay on the construction of the check dams across the Bhavani. Utilising the time, the Kerala government last week completed the second check dam at Manjakandi,” says Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) youth wing Secretary V Eswaran. 

Eswaran, who was the first to bring the construction to light, blamed the Tamil Nadu Government for its inability to stop construction of the check dams.

“The construction of the remaining four check dams at least can be stopped if the Government wakes up now to the issue,” he told DTNext. 

On the other hand, a joint action committee of several political parties, including Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and organisations led by Thanthai Periyar Dravida Kazhagam (TPDK), had staged quite a few agitations against Kerala’s activity.Though they have been repeatedly stating that they would soon be moving the Supreme Court over the issue, since the steps taken by the State Government were not enough, they were yet to do so. 

“We will soon be impleading as a party in the case in the next hearing,” TPDK general secretary Ku Ramakrishnan said. The coordinator of the joint action committee stated that they would soon meet the Chief Minister of Kerala and make an appeal to stop the construction of check dams. 

Meanwhile, farmers and people of Coimbatore region hope there would be some swift action by the Government of Tamil Nadu as well as political parties before the construction of the remaining four check dams at Padavayal, Seerakadavu, Chavadiyur and Koodapattu.