Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam today called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi here and urged him to advise Karnataka not to proceed with its plan to construct a reservoir at Mekedatu across river Cauvery.
In his first one-to-one meeting after assuming the office of Chief Minister in September last, Panneerselvam handed over a letter seeking his intervention in the matter and the overall Cauvery issue.
His visit comes ahead of a Karnataka all-party delegation's proposed meeting with Modi on the Mekedatu row on April 30 to press its case for building a dam at Mekedatu.
"I request your personal intervention in the matter and urge you to advise Karnataka not to proceed with their illegal plan of construction of reservoir at Mekedatu, in the guise of supplying drinking water, in utter disregard of the final order of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal dated February 5, 2007," he said in the letter, copies of which were released to the media here.
He also urged Modi to direct the Ministry of Water Resources to accede to the long-pending request of AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa for the constitution of the Cauvery Management Board and Cauvery Water Regulation Committee without any further delay.
