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Tamil Nadu government, during a Chief Minister-level conference on inter-state water agreements held here in 2019, had agreed to renew the pact, he said.
For this, five-member committees, comprising experts, including technical persons, had been formed under the aegis of department secretaries of the two states, he said adding that these panels had met three times so far. ”Based on the decisions taken at these meetings, a consensus has been made with Tamil Nadu to formulate an initial framework for reviewing the Parambikulam-Aliyar agreement,” Vijayan noted.
As requested by Kerala, the neighbouring government had also agreed to increase the number of meetings of the Joint Water Regulatory Board which has the power to divide and distribute water under the agreement.
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Kerala used to express concern over Tamil Nadu’s approach to the river-water sharing agreement, signed by the two states in 1970, with retrospective effect from 1958.
The Parambikulam Aliyar Project (PAP) is an inter-state multi-purpose project completed in late 1960s and its functioning is based on an agreement between the two states.
The project diverts the water from the basins of three west flowing rivers originating from the western ghats along the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border, namely the Periyar, Chalakkudipuzha and Bharathapuzha. These rivers are mainly fed by the southwest monsoon and northeast monsoon rainfall. The water diverted to the east is mainly used for irrigation purpose.