Supreme Court issues notice to Centre, Tamil Nadu and Kerala on plea to replace Mullaperiyar Dam

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Central government, the Tamil Nadu and Kerala governments in a PIL seeking the construction of a new dam to replace the 130-year-old Mullaperiyar dam following concerns over its safety and structural stability.

A bench Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran has sought responses on a petition filed by Save Kerala Brigade's alleging that over 10 million people live in the close vicinity of the British-era dam.

Court was told today that the aging dam poses a serious threat to the lives and property of people living downstream in Kerala and urged that the Court direct the construction of a new dam to ensure public safety.

The dam built across the Periyar River in Kerala's Idukki district, is operated by Tamil Nadu government under a lease agreement.

It is to be noted that earlier this year the Supreme Court had ordered the formation of a new Supervisory Committee to find solutions acceptable to both Tamil Nadu and Kerala in a case concerning the Mullaperiyar Dam.

"The matter pertains to the Mullaperiyar Dam in relation to the dispute between the State of Tamil Nadu and Kerala regarding the rights over the dam, which was decided by a three-judge bench of this Court. Thereafter, the State of Tamil Nadu filed an application, inter alia, accusing the State of Kerala of interfering with the implementation of the above-mentioned judgment", the court had said while hearing a plea filed Tamil Nadu government, claiming that the Kerala government had denied permission to carry out certain activities near the Mullaperiyar Dam.

While taking note of pending cases related to the matter before different benches, the Court accordingly ordered to club all matters together and to place them before the Chief Justice of India(CJI). It thus had ordered, "The original suit has been under consideration by a three-judge bench of this Court since 2016. Some of these matters are required to be listed before a three-judge bench. In the interest of justice, we are of the view that all matters should be clubbed together and listed before a single bench. The matter may be placed before the Chief Justice of India for appropriate orders".

Mullaperiyar Dam has been a contentious issue between Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Dam is situated in Kerala's Periyar River and which supplies water to five districts of Tamil Nadu. Kerala has been maintaining for the past few decades that the Dam is unsafe, Tamil Nadu has all along vouched for its safety. In 2014, the Supreme Court had ruled in favour of the State of Tamil Nadu, reiterating that the dam's structure was safe while permitting the water level to be maintained at 142 feet. The Court had also constituted a supervisory committee in order to assess the dam's safety periodically.

In April 2022, the Supreme Court had directed the State of Kerala and Tamil Nadu to extend whatever possible assistance is required by the Supervisory Committee while pronouncing its order over the issue of the Supervisory Committee in the matter concerning the safety of the Mullaperiyar dam.

Case Title: SAVE KERALA BRIGADE Vs UNION OF INDIA

Bench: CJI Gavai and Justice Vinod Chandran

Hearing Date: October 13, 2025