The Hindu Business Line : Kerala reiterates stand on Mullaperiyar dam height

The Kerala Government was opposed to raising the water level at Mullaperiyar dam from the existing 136 feet, the Water Resources Minister, Mr N.K. Premachandran, said in the State Assembly on Tuesday.

In reply to questions, the Minister said that the seepage of water from the dam had increased after a tremor was recorded in its vicinity last month. There were chinks in the plastering and more studies are required to assess the actual extent of damage to the dam.

Committee appointed

He said that the Government had appointed a committee with the Director of Centre for Earth Sciences Studies (CESS) as the coordinator to study the impact of tremors recorded in 2000 and 2001 in the region on the dam. The report of the committee along with the studies carried out on the smaller dam had pointed out that the dam did not have the strength to withstand an earthquake and recommended against raising the water level.

The Minister informed the House that no bilateral talks had been held with the Tamil Nadu Government on the issue. There was a proposal for reconstructing the dam and following discussions the Central Water Commission had with the Kerala and Tamil Nadu Governments, a joint inspection was conducted and site for a new dam was identified, he added.

The Health Minister, Ms P.K. Sreemathy, told the House that 23 medicines out of 293 samples supplied to Government hospitals in the State were found to be of substandard quality.

An inspection by the Health Department this year revealed that five companies supplied these medicines. But the Centre had not blacklisted these companies, she added.

Speed Governors

The Transport Minister, Mr Mathew T. Thomas, said that the previous Government had purchased 800 speed governors from a company based in Coimbatore at the rate of Rs 15,960 per piece.

Though the products carried one-year guarantee, most of them were not functional. He said that the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) was planning to start a courier service to mobilise additional revenue.

Also, the unoccupied buildings of the corporation would be rented out.

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