Mullaperiyar: panel to make efforts to resolve differences among people of Kerala, T.N.

A year into its protest at Vypeen, demanding the construction of a new tunnel to release water to Tamil Nadu from the Mullaperiyar dam—rather than building a new dam as proposed by the Kerala government—the Mullaperiyar Tunnel Protest Committee is now set to launch a multi-pronged approach to resolve differences and reach a consensus between the people of the two border States.

While the protest will continue to press for a new tunnel, the committee also plans to initiate direct interactions with farmers and intellectuals in Tamil Nadu regarding the more-than-a-century-old dam. Tamil author A. Vennila, who wrote the novel Neeradhikaram based on Mullaperiyar, was the chief guest at the event held at Vypeen on Thursday (October 2, 2025) to mark the first anniversary of the protest.

In her address, Ms. Vennila said that people in Tamil Nadu were unaware of such a protest taking place in Kerala, advocating for the supply of water to Tamil Nadu. This served as an eye-opener for the committee and prompted it to establish direct contact with Tamil Nadu-based literary figures and intellectuals.

Academician J. Devika inaugurated the inaugurated the function. Mullaperiyar Tunnel Protest Committee president Ramesh Ravi presided. Ms. Vennila handed over her book to Mullaperiyar dam protest activist C.P. Roy, who in turn gave her the book he wrote on Mullaperiyar, Dam 999+999.

The committee also resolved to exert pressure on both the Kerala and Tamil Nadu governments to find an amicable solution through dialogue.

The committee’s position is that the more-than-a-decade-old verdict by a five-member Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court on Mullaperiyar referred to the construction of a new tunnel—lower than the existing one—to release water to Tamil Nadu. This would reduce the water level in the dam, ensuring supply to Tamil Nadu while maintaining safety for Kerala. The committee added that constructing such a tunnel would cost only about ₹100 crore, compared to a new dam that could exceed ₹2,000 crore and take significantly longer to complete.