TN CM leaves for Delhi for Mullaperiyar talks

Chennai, Nov 28 (UNI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi left for New Delhi this evening to take part in the crucial talks tomorrow with his Kerala counterpart V S Achuthanandan on the vexed Mullaperiyar issue.

The Chief Minister was accompanied by Union Ministers Dayanidhi Maran and K Venkatapathy, State Electricity Minister 'Arcot' N Veerasamy, PWD Minister Duraimurugan and Chief Secretary L K Tripathy.

He is scheduled to return to the state capital tomorrow night.

The talks between the Chief Ministers had been arranged by the Union Water Resources Ministry, following the Supreme Court's directive to the two states to resolve the problem through dialogue.

The two neighbouring states had locked horns over the issue of increasing the water level of the 111-year-old dam.

While Tamil Nadu wanted the implementation of an apex court order to increase the water level of the dam from the present 136 ft to 142 ft for the benefit of farmers in six southern districts of the state, Kerala wanted to maintain status quo, contending that raising the level would endanger the safety of 3.5 million people living downstream in five districts.

The issue became a highly emotive one, with politicians from both sides waging a statement war almost every other day.

At one stage, the situation threatened to go out of control, when Kerala unilaterally sought the assistance of the Navy to assess the safety of the dam, evoking a strong reaction from Mr Karunanidhi.

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