Date:25/10/2007 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/10/25/stories/2007102551182300.htm

Back Kerala, TN to sign water sharing pact

Our Bureau

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct. 24 Kerala will enter into an agreement with the Tamil Nadu Government on sharing of water from Nayyar dam.

The State Cabinet, which met on Wednesday, entrusted the Water Resources Minister, Mr N.K. Premachandran, to sign the agreement on behalf of the Government.

The Cabinet decision follows persistent requests by the Tamil Nadu Government for release of water from the dam for agricultural purposes in Kanyakumari district.

The Chief Minister, Mr V.S. Achuthanandan, told newspersons after the Cabinet meeting that the Government had earlier taken a decision in this regard. The Cabinet now ratified it.

Talks with truckers

The Cabinet also authorised the ministers of Transport, Labour, Industries and Food to hold talks with the lorry owners who have been on strike for six days now.

The Chief Minister said that there was no reason for the lorry owners to go on strike as most of their demands had already been met.

The strike by the lorry owners is mainly against the decision of the Government to raise their contribution to the Workers’ Welfare Fund.

Doctors’ strike

The Government is also looking for ways to settle the ongoing non-cooperation strike by government doctors, he said.

Mr Achuthanandan said that the President, Ms Pratibha Patil, would attend three programmes during her one-day visit to the State on November 1.

She would inaugurate the ‘Clean Kerala Programme’, a scheme to award 10,000 scholarships to students and a project to develop the skills of sportspersons.