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I always consider my Identity as a Tamil. Just Tamil. No further Nationality is required for me. But even more than that, I primarily consider myself as a Human. I love my Mother Earth. I like to save my environment and Earth from ruthless exploitation which results in global warming and climate change. That’s the reason I oppose the Nuclear Power Plant in Kudankulam. Not only in Kudankulam, I will also oppose Nuclear Power Plant in Jaitapur or even in Kabul. But Kudankulam being in Tamilnadu gives me more vigor to oppose it as Tamilnadu is my own Land
While I oppose the Nuclear Power plant for Environmental reason, I also oppose the construction of Dams. I am an environmentalist and I have to oppose the Dams as it is dangerous to the environment. Dams are unnatural structures which disturbs the natural River Ecosystem. I am against Dams of any kind. Whether it is New Dams or Old Dams, Dams are bad. Dams were created not just for Storing water for irrigation. It’s only a starting point. Human greed takes it further to generate Hydroelectricity, drawing water for Industrialization and so on. And in the process Dams pose a threat to the environment
Kerala says it will demolish the old Dam and construct a new Dam. How will a new Dam save Kerala? It will also have to face earth quakes? It can also get cracked in an earth quake. In fact many Scientists believe that “Dams create the Earthquakes”. The Huge amount of water stored in the reservoirs is the cause for many Earth quakes. So, Kerala’s theory that a new Dam will save them is as theatrical as to say the old Dam will fail in an Earth quake. Both new and old Dams are vulnerable in the event of an Earth quake. Adding to this, there is a scientific proof to link Dams as a cause for Earthquakes.
Let me quote a Scientific theory here (http://www.internationalrivers.org/node/3845)
“Earthquakes can be induced by dams. Globally, thereare over 100 identified cases of earthquakes that scientists believe weretriggered by reservoirs. The most serious case may be the 7.9-magnitude Sichuanearthquake in May 2008, which killed an estimated 80,000 people and has beenlinked to the construction of the Zipingpu Dam.”
If Kerala’s claim that Mullai Periyaru Dam is in a seismic zone, it holds true for the new Dam it plans to replace Mullai Periyaru. As nature of Earthquakes is unpredictable, so does the stability of the Dams even if it is constructed with ultra-modern technology. There is no 100% safety for the new Dams or Old Dams.
So, what’s the aim of Kerala? What is the ultimate motive behind this massive PR campaign of Kerala and Malayalees ?
As much as the Kudankulam issue which tries to give power to the Business elites, Kerala’s cry about Dam safety has more Electricity and Economic reason than Safety. Kerala’s PR machine does not oppose the Dams in total. They selectively oppose only Mullai Periyaru Dam which is in the control of Tamilnadu. They don’t oppose the Idduki Reservoir which gives electricity to Kerala. If Dams are totally bad as “Dam 999” says, why would they want to construct a new Dam? Should not they get rid of all Dams in Kerala (Like the Elwha Dam removal in USA) ?
The whole issue comes down to the perception of Kerala that Tamilnadu pays less taxes for the water and electricity it produces from the Mullai Periyaru Dam and that Kerala could not meet its state demand of electricity from its Idukii reservoir. If Kerala needs to reprice the taxes that Tamilnadu pays, it is only reasonable for it to come out openly and ask for new taxes based on the current Inflation. But Kerala indulges in fear mongering to achieve multiple purposes.
Constructing a new dam will hit multiple mangoes in one stone for Kerala
- The lease of the land to Tamilnadu for 999 years will expire automatically with the construction of new dam.
- Tamilnadu will lose its rights over the land to get water and generate electricity
- Kerala can use the new dam to generate electricity to meet its state Demand
Power and Economy are the primary motive behind Kerala's fear mongering PR drive. In this PR campaign Kerala unleashes many fictional stories, such as Kerala's claim that the Agreement of 1886 to give Tamilnadu the rights for 999 years was not a fair deal and it was thrust on it in by the erstwhile British Presidency of Madras on the Princely state of Travancore. Kerala’s fiction is that the mighty British empire forced the agreement on the small Princely state of Travancore. However, in 1970 the Kerala (Chief Minister C. Achutha Menon) and Tamil Nadu governments signed a formal agreement to renew the 1886 treaty almost completely. In Independent India, when Tamilnadu lost its lands such as Devikulam and Peermade to Kerala, it can only be fictional to say the Agreement was forced on Kerala.
May be in 1970 Kerala Politicians did not foresee the Power challenges in a modern World. Since 1970 the demand for Electricity has grown in Kerala and it needs Mullai Periyaru to meet its demand. So, a new Dam is a clever ploy to kick out Tamilnadu and take full control of the Mullai Periyaru Dam
Kerala’s well-oiled PR machines uses sleight of hand tactics to hide the actual reason and fabricates Mullai Periyaru into a safety issue. Kerala claims that it is ready to bear the cost of constructing a new Dam and it is magnanimous enough to provide water to Tamilnadu. It portrays as if it is concerned only about the safety of the people. But the actual fact is, the day Kerala starts its new Dam construction, Tamilnadu loses all its rights as the old lease agreement will expire automatically. It is a well calculated game plan of Kerala. After all, Malayalee IAS, IPS and IFS officers run entire India. So, they know better lobbying than slogan shouting Tamils.
Kerala is a water surplus state. Kerala is not dependent on Agriculture and does not grow crops such as Paddy in its river basin. Kerala imports most of its food products from Tamilnadu. So, water is not the problem here. It’s again the power politics, politics of money and Power, is playing here. The same power issue which haunts Tamils at Kudankulam is haunting us in Mullaiperiyaru also.
As I said in this article, Dams are always Dangerous and we should avoid Dams. Let’s start a debate of carefully demolishing all the many mindless Dams constructed in many Rivers. Tamilnadu being the downstream state of many rivers was a victim of many mindless Dams constructed across rivers such as Cauvery. I am all for demolishing such Dams in a systematic fashion like the Elwha Dam removal in USA. Let’s carefully demolish all Dams across Cauvery. Let Nature runs its own course, whether it is Cauvery or Periyaru river.
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Tamils were just reduced to slogan shouting, Tamil jingoistic herd; Look at Malayalees who have unleashed their PR machines in a much more sophisticated pattern. From Hollywood movies to Save Mullaperiyar campaign in Facebook, their campaign is a well-oiled PR Machine.
Tamils need a better PR machine to expose Kerala’s Political Games. Let’s bring out these facts rather than just slogan shouting Tamil jingoism.
Let's think about how we can do it...
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Please spend some time to watch these videos about Mullai Periyaru Dam - The Real story of Mullai Periyar Dam
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