Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Top-level talks on PAP soon

CHENNAI: A meeting at the level of Chief Secretaries of Tamil Nadu and Kerala is likely to be held shortly to complete the review of the Parambikulam-Aliyar Project agreement, according to Tamil Nadu Public Works Minister Durai Murugan.

Initiating the debate on the demand for grants to his department, the Minister told the Assembly on Thursday that the Chief Secretaries would fix a suitable date for this purpose.

Earlier, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi had conveyed to Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan to resume bilateral talks for completion of the review of the Parambikulam Aliyar Project agreement.

Tracing the genesis of the PAP agreement, he stated that Tamil Nadu and Kerala had entered into the agreement on May 29, 1970, with retrospective effect from November 9, 1958, for utilisation of flows of the rivers Anamalayar, Nirar, Sholayar, Parambikulam, Aliyar and its tributary Palar (not the Palar river running through Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) besides streams flowing into them for generation of hydro-electric power, irrigation, drinking water supply and industrial use in the two States.

The PAP agreement was due for review in November 1988. Subsequently, several rounds of discussion took place.

As a sequel to the ministerial-level meeting at Chennai in June 2002, a technical committee comprising engineers from the two States prepared a report to identify the areas that required amendments in the agreement. Differences between the two States had been narrowed down.

“However, the review could not be completed,” Mr. Durai Murugan said.

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