City
Epaper

Tamil Nadu to transport 10 MLD of water by train to Chennai

By IANS | Updated: June 21, 2019 19:50 IST

The Tamil Nadu government plans to transport 10 million litres of water daily by rail from Jolarpettai in Vellore district to meet the water needs of parched Chennai.

Open in App

Announcing this on Friday, Chief Minister K. Palaniswami said a sum of Rs 65 crore has been allocated for this purpose.

He also requested Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to extend cooperation to strengthen the Mullaperiyar Dam so as to increase the storage levels.

Currently the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (Chennai Metro) is supplying about 525 million litres per day (MLD) in Chennai. The water from Jolarpettai will augment the existing supply.

Palaniswami also welcomed Vijayan's offer to supply water to Tamil Nadu.

Vijayan's office had on Thursday offered to supply two million litres of drinking water to neighbouring Tamil Nadu by train.

Palaniswami said if Kerala gives two MLD then it will be useful for the people of Tamil Nadu instead of one-time supply.

According to him, the state will write to Kerala regarding this aspect.

Palaniswami also said the Kerala government has created hurdles in Tamil Nadu's attempts to strengthen the Mullaperiyar Dam so that the water storage level could be increased to 152 feet from the current 142 feet.

He requested Vijayan to extend cooperation to Tamil Nadu to implement the Supreme Court judgement in the matter.

Though located in Kerala, the Mullaperiyar Dam is owned and operated by Tamil Nadu.

Palaniswami said water to people of Chennai is also supplied in various localities through water tankers.

While Cholavaram (full capacity 1,081 mcft) and Redhills (full capacity 3,300 mcft) reservoirs that supply water to Chennai have run dry, there is only 1 mcft of water left in Chembarambakkam lake (against a full capacity of 3,645 mcft) and 21 mcft water left in Poondi reservoir (against a full capacity of 3,231 mcft), according to the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board.

Palaniswami also rejected as false news that two tankerloads of water are being supplied to the homes of ministers daily.

Earlier, at a meeting that he chaired in the Secretariat to take stock of the water situation in the state, Palaniswami ordered allocation of Rs 200 crore for drinking water schemes in Tamil Nadu. This is in addition to Rs 710 crore allocated earlier.

( With inputs from IANS )

Tags: K PalaniswamiTamil NaduchennaiPinarayi Vijayankerala
Open in App

Related Stories

NationalTamil Nadu Road Accident: Lorry Hits Sabarimala Pilgrims on Bengaluru–Chennai Highway; Two Dead (Watch Video)

NationalKerala: Four-Year-Old Girl Killed, Another Injured After School Bus Runs Over Children on Campus in Idukki

NationalTamil Nadu: 3 Medical Students Killed in Thoothukudi After Car Crashes Into Tree on Coastal Road

NationalColombo Weather Disruption: Two International Flights Diverted to Thiruvananthapuram Airport

NationalSchool Holiday in Tamil Nadu on November 18, 2025: Schools and Colleges Shut in These Districts

National Realted Stories

NationalIndia's scheduled commercial banks' GNPA improve 2.1 pc in Q2FY26: Report

NationalNew ‘Mushran Bhavan’ to house Narsinghpur Congress office: Vivek Tankha

NationalRJD hits out at NDA for promoting dynastic politics in new Bihar govt formation

NationalAfter Bihar poll results, Rahul Gandhi almost disappeared: Karnataka BJP

NationalShivakumar: No one questioning Siddaramaiah’s tenure, denies reports of Delhi visits