MADURAI: The Chief Secretary of Kerala government P Prabhakaran submitted before the High Court Bench here that proper protection was being provided to Mullaiperiyar dam, the engineers of Tamil Nadu PWD and their family members by the Kerala police. He also informed the bench that tourists visiting the dam from Tamil Nadu and devotees going to Sabarimala were given adequate protection. In a counter affidavit filed in the court, Prabhakaran said that no complaints have been raised from any quarter regarding safety issues. After raising preliminary objections on January 9 to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Tamil Nadu PWD Engineers seeking Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in place of Kerala police at the dam, he filed a counter affidavit on behalf of the Kerala government and Director General of Police at the court on Tuesday. The Chief Secretary in the counter affidavit stated that the relief sought in the PIL could not be granted by the High Court since the subject matter of the petition was pending with the Supreme Court. He also recalled the apex court’s decision to dispose of a petition filed by the TN government which sought CISF and CRPF protection at the dam site. In its order dated December 15 last year, the Supreme Court disposed of the petition after recording the submissions of the Kerala government, which assured that it would do all that was necessary to protect the dam. The Kerala government had also told the Supreme Court that all steps have been taken by the local police and forest officials to ensure the dam’s safety and adequate number of personnel were deployed for this purpose. Refuting charges that illegal structures were built with Kerala’s support at the dam site, the Chief Secretary said that the PIL was not maintainable and sought its dismissal.
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