CHENNAI: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary Jayalalithaa on Tuesday accused the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Government of failing to adopt a clever, tactful and courageous approach to finding a solution to river water disputes with Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

In a statement here, Ms. Jayalalithaa said lack of administrative efficiency on the part of the DMK Government had come in the way of finding a solution to the inter-State water disputes with the neighbouring States.

She warned that the northern districts, including Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallore, and the suburban areas of Chennai would face serious drinking water shortage if the Andhra Pradesh Government went ahead with its plan to construct a check dam across the Palar.

Agrarian crisis

Tamil Nadu, more particularly the northern districts, would experience an agrarian crisis. Agriculturists would suffer a serious setback.

During her tenure as Chief Minister, she had written to her Andhra Pradesh counterpart asking him to give up the plan to construct the check dam.

Official-level talks

Extensive official-level talks were also held with that State. sThough the previous AIADMK Government filed an original suit in the Supreme Court under Article 131 of the Constitution in February 2006, Minister for Public Works Durai Murugan had stated in the Assembly recently that the DMK Government would move the apex court, she said.

Referring to Minister for Electricity Arcot N.Veerasamy's remark that the State Government would prevent the Centre from clearing the check dam project by taking up the issue with the Union Minister for Environment A.Raja, she said the Andhra Pradesh Government would not have earmarked Rs.30 crore for the current year towards the Rs.270 crore-project without the Environment Ministry's clearance.

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