Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Sunday wrote to his Tamil Nadu counterpart J Jayalalithaa stating that he was willing to issue a joint statement with her urging peace and restraint on the Mullaperiyar dam issue.
"This is a situation where we have to urgently provide a sense of protection and confidence to our people. I am sure you will act immediately and firmly to contain the situation. I am willing to issue a joint statement with you and appeal for peace and restraint," Chandy's letter said.
He also mentioned several instances of attacks on Keralites in Tamil Nadu arising out of the dispute.
"There are a large number of students from Kerala studying in various institutions in Tamil Nadu. Lakhs of people are employed in organised and unorganised sectors. Their families in Kerala are in a state of anxiety. I request you to take immediate action to control the situation and ensure safety of our people," he said.
He added that his government had taken every possible step to ensure that no person from Tamil Nadu is attacked in Kerala.
Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been at loggerheads over the dam, built under an 1886 accord between the then Maharaja of Travancore and the erstwhile British Raj. While it is located in Kerala's Idduki district, the dam's water serves Tamil Nadu, which also manages its affairs.
Kerala wants the dam's height to be lowered to 120 feet in view of its weakness.
But Tamil Nadu wants the storage capacity to be increased by raising the dam height from 136 feet to 142 feet as the state's irrigation needs have shot up.
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