Thiruvananthapuram, Monday, December 01, 2008: Central water resources department, comprising nine MPs, which include PJ Kurian, KE Ismail and Lonappan Nambaddan will visit Mullaperiyar today. The committee presided by Raipathy Sambashiva Rao will inspect the strength of the Mullaperiyar dam.
The Special Parliamentary Committee will also consider the recommendation for a new dam in Mullaperiyar raised by Kerala.

The visit comes in the wake of Supreme Court decision on final hearing of Mullaperiyar issue in January.
‘Mullaperiyar’ has been a reason for a major standoff between Kerala and Tamil Nadu after the government of Tamil Nadu proposed an increase in the storage level of the dam from the currently maintained 136 feet to 142 feet.

The Kerala government has opposed this move, citing safety concerns for the more than hundred year old bridge and especially for the thickly populated districts downstream.