New Mullaperiyar Dam : Kerala Govt approaches Central Govt
The Kerala government has approached the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) to initiate the process for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study, setting the stage for the construction of a new Mullaperiyar dam.
The state plans to dismantle the existing 128-year-old structure, citing safety concerns for downstream populations and ecosystems.
The ministry’s Expert Appraisal Committee for river valley and hydroelectric projects has scheduled a meeting on May 28 to discuss the proposal.
Currently, the dam is owned, operated, and maintained by the Tamil Nadu government under a lease agreement. Kerala submitted its proposal in January, which the ministry referred to the expert committee on May 14.
According to the proposal, the new dam is to be built 366 metres downstream of the existing one, within the Periyar Tiger Reserve, a sensitive environmental area.
Kerala’s submission emphasises the critical need for a new structure due to the advanced age of the existing dam and the potential risk it poses to human lives, property, and biodiversity in the densely populated central districts of Kerala.
The pre-feasibility report accessed by the Times of India underscores the catastrophic implications of a potential dam failure, which could trigger a cascading collapse of three other dams in the Idukki project.
The Kerala government assures that the current water diversion arrangements to Tamil Nadu will remain uninterrupted during and after the construction of the new dam.
The chief engineer of the Irrigation Design and Research Board highlighted the minimal submergence of forest land in the wildlife sanctuary as a key advantage of the proposed site, identified through preliminary studies that considered three potential alignments downstream of the current dam.
In response to inquiries about rehabilitation and resettlement, the relocation of water courses, and infrastructure such as roads, railways, transmission lines, and water pipelines, the government stated that there are no such requirements.
Regarding pending litigation, it clarified that the ongoing case pertains to the stability of the existing dam, not the construction of a new one.