Mullaperiyar dam: An unimaginable disaster waiting to happen

If an earthquake causes the dam to collapse, it can threaten the lives of 3.5 million people downstream. The issue needs to be looked at as a national problem, not as a dispute between two states, says Dipu Santh

India is said to be a country that upholds the slogan "unity in diversity". We proudly state this to everyone around the world, but there is a question that we have to ask ourselves -- is it true or is it just a statement we put forward to hide our failings?

There's a small example I would like to put forward, the present Mullaperiyar dam crisis which should by all means seen as a national issue rather than an issue between two states.

If we dig deep and go into the history, the Mullaperiyar Dam is a masonry gravity dam built over the river Periyar in 1895 during the British colonial rule with a predicted life span of 50 years to divert water eastwards towards the Madras presidency area (present day Tamil Nadu).

The diverted water from this dam is used for irrigation in Sivaganga, Theni, Madurai and Ramanathapuram districts. The Periyar power station in Tamil Nadu produces hydro-electric power from these waters and distributes that electricity in Tamil Nadu.