CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has written to his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan requesting that the Siruvani dam retain its full reservoir level.

Stalin asked Vijayan in his letter on Sunday to respond positively because the water shortage in Coimbatore and its surrounding areas was becoming a major source of concern.

He said that the Kerala irrigation department was maintaining the maximum water level at 877.00 metres instead of the full reservoir level of 878.50 metres as specified in the interstate agreement. 

Stalin also mentioned that lowering the water level by 1.50 m resulted in a shortage of 122.05 million cubic feet (mc ft), or 19% of the dam's total storage. He said that this makes meeting the water needs of the people of Coimbatore and its surrounding areas difficult.

Stalin added that the state had received only 0.484 tmc ft to 1.128 tmc ft in the previous six years, which was significantly less than the 1.30 tmc ft specified in the interstate agreement. He also stated that officials from the Tamil Nadu Water Resources Department had raised this issue with their counterparts in Kerala, but to no avail.

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