Stalin flies to Delhi, will call on President
CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Sunday headed for Delhi to meet central leaders to press a no-permission plea for neighbour Karnataka’s decision to go ahead with the construction of a multimillion dam at the border point of Mekedatu, which will prevent Cauvery water from flowing into the state’s delta farmlands.
Stalin’s visit comes a day ater his Karnataka counterpart BS Yediyurappa said in Delhi that his government is proceeding with the dam plan.
Tamil Nadu has tried hard to impress upon the Centre to prevent the project, which needs clearance from the Union Ministry of Water Resources.
Stalin had taken up the mater with Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier and an all-party delegation of MLAS had met Union Water Resources Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Friday and submited a memorandum.
Yediyurappa, who reportedly faces a challenge to his chair, had met Modi and other leaders in Delhi on Saturday. He told the media that the project will go ahead.
Stalin will meet President Ramnath Kovind tomorrow at 12 noon, his first as chief minister. Officials said it is a courtesy call only.
The chief minister is also expected to press for an allocation of 10 million doses of Covid vaccine for the state. Tamil Nadu in the past 24 hours registered 2,205 new Covid-19 cases, officials said on Sunday morning. The total number of infections has touched 25,33,323.
Chennai added 137 new cases. The total in the metropolis stands at 5,36,032.
Among Chennai’s neighbouring districts, Chengalpatu saw 124 new cases, Kancheepuram 38 and Thiruvallur 74.
Coimbatore had 241 new cases on Saturday, and Cuddalore 76. Fatalities reported across the state were 43. The total number of deaths in the state due to the pandemic reached 33,695.
Medical Minister M. Subramanian, meanwhile, accepted a challenge thrown by leader of opposition Edappadi Palaniswamy to issue a white paper on the details of vaccination in the state.
Palanisamy, the former chief minister, questioned Subramanian’s statement that the government had increased vaccinations considerably in comparison with what the Anna DMK government was providing.
Subramanian had also accused the ADMK government of not launching a vaccination programme to prevent meningitis and pneumonia. The minister told the media that doctors have speculated that the third wave of Covid will hit children.