THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala will soon submit a Detailed Project Report (DPR) to the Supreme Court appointed Empowered Committee on its proposal to build a new dam at Mullaperiyar to replace the existing 115-year-old structure over which it is locked in a row with Tamil Nadu.The construction of the new dam would depend on the final decision of the Supreme Court since the long-pending dispute between Kerala and Tamil Nadu was before the apex court, Water Resources Minister P J Joseph told the Assembly.While Kerala has been pressing for construction of a new dam holding that the existing structure was extremely weak and posed a serious threat to millions living in the downstream areas in the state, Tamil Nadu is opposed to it.The Empowered Committee, headed by former Chief Justice of India, Justice A S Anand, was constituted in 2010 to look into various aspects of the issue including safety of the present dam, feasibility of raising the reservoir?s water level above 136 ft as demanded by Tamil Nadu and Kerala?s demand for a new dam.Joseph said the construction of a new dam was estimated to cost Rs 663 crore and a token provision of Rs 5 crore had been made in the state?s budget for 2011-12. A special purpose vehicle company called Periyar Development Kerala Ltd was proposed to be formed for taking up the work, he said.The feasibility report on the new dam had already been submitted to the Empowered Committee, which has on it members nominated by the two states, but its response had not been received so far, he said.The environmental impact study on the project, entrusted to the Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI), was yet to be completed. When a new dam was constructed, the existing one would be dismantled at an appropriate time based on a detailed technical study, Joseph said.However, certain suggestions on this, such as whether the old one should be fully or partially dismantled, had been included in the DPR.
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