Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Prime Minister urged to drop move to divert water to Tamil Nadu

Special Correspondent

CPI(M) MP points out that rivers Pampa and Achencoil do not have excess water

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: C.S. Sujatha, CPI(M) Member of Parliament from Alappuzha, has urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to drop the Pampa-Achencoil-Vaipar Link Canal Project aimed at diverting water from the two Kerala rivers to Tamil Nadu.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, released for publication here on Wednesday, Ms. Sujatha pointed out that the two rivers did not have excess water that could be diverted to Tamil Nadu and that any attempt to divert water would prove detrimental to the interests of the people of the Central Travancore in Kerala. The two rivers originate and run their entire course in Kerala and play a crucial role in Kerala's environment, economy and culture and diversion of water from the two rivers would hurt Kerala's interests seriously, she said.

Ms. Sujatha said the assumption of the National Water Development Agency (NWDA) that the two rivers had excess water was preposterous and far from the truth and pointed out that studies conducted by government and non-government institutions had proved the NWDA's inference to be an absurdity.

These studies have shown that River Pampa would be short of 35,370 lakh cm. pure water and River Achencoil short of 4,590 lakh cm. water by 2050, she added.

Ms. Sujatha said the Central Travancore region was already experiencing serious water shortage on account of unbridled sand mining and other human interventions.

The move to link the two rivers with Vaipar will also lead to rampant deforestation and that would only add to the crisis.

The Kuttanad region, which is dependent on the waters from the Pampa and Achancoil rivers, will also find paddy cultivation difficult if water was diverted to Tamil Nadu, she said.

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