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Moot Proposition 1

Jasmin River Dam Project

Context & Genesis

Jasmin River Dam is a masonrygravity dambuilt on Jasmin River in

Cheranadu located in Bharatha (now India). It was constructed
between 1887 and 1895. This dam was constructed as a result of an
agreement arrived between Cheranadu and Dravidanaduto divert
water to meet the agricultural needs of certain parts of Dravidanadu.

The Jasmin River which flows westward of Cheranadu was diverted

eastwards to provide water to the arid rain shadow region of
“Koodal” in Dravidanadu which was in dire need of a greater supply
of water than the littleriver there could provide. The dam created
the Jasmin river reservoir, from which water was diverted eastwards
via a tunnel to augment the small flow of the Little River. The Little
River was dammed by the Little River Dam to provide a source for
irrigating large tracts in Koodal region. Initially the dam waters were
used only for the irrigation of 68,558 ha. Currently, the water from
the Jasmin Lake created by the dam, is diverted through the water
shed cutting and a tunnel to Forebay Dam. From the Forebay dam,
hydel pipe lines carry the water to the Jasmin Power Station in Lower
Jasmin River. This is used for power generation (180 MW capacity) in
the Jasmin Power Station. From the Jasmin Power Station, the water
is let out into little river and then to Little River Dam.
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On 29 October 1886, a lease indenture for 999 years was made

between the Maharaja of Cheranadu and the Maharaja of
Dravidanadu. This lease was made after 24 years negotiation
between the Maharaja’s. The agreement gave 8000 acres of land for
the reservoir and another 100 acres to construct the dam. The tax for
each acre was 5 Ruba (then currency of cheranadu) per year. The
lease also provided the Dravidanadu the rights over "all the waters"
of the Jasmin River and its catchment basin, for an annual rent of
40,000 Ruba.

In May 1887, construction of the dam began. The dam was

constructed from limestone and "surkhi" (burnt brick powder and a
mixture of sugar and calcium oxide ) at a cost of 104 lakhsRuba
(currency prevalent in Chranadu), was 173 feet high and 1241 feet in
length along the top and enclosed more than 15 thousand million
cubic feet of water.

The construction involved the use of troops from the Dravidanadu

Pioneers as well as Portuguese carpenters from the Maceleas town
who were employed in the construction of the coffer-dams and
other structures. The greatest challenge was the diversion of the
river so that lower portions of the great dam could be built. The
temporary embankments and coffer-dams used to restrain the river
waters were regularly swept away by floods and rains. The dam
created a reservoir in a remote gorge of the Jasmin river situated
3,000 feet above the sea in dense and malarial jungle, and from the
northerly arm of this manmade waterbody, the water flowed first
through a deep cutting for about a mile and then through a tunnel,
5704 feet in length and later through another cutting on the other
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side of the watershed and into a natural ravine and so onto the Little
River which has been partly built up for a length of 86 miles, finally
discharging 2000 cusecs of water for the arid rain shadow regions of
Koodal in Dravidanadu.

The Jasmin River Dam project, as it was then known, was widely
considered well into the 20th century as "one of the most
extraordinary feats of engineering ever performed by man". A large
amount of manual labour was involved and worker mortality from
malaria was high. It was claimed that had it not been for "the
medicinal effects of the native spirit called arrack, the dam might
never have been completed".483 people died of diseases during the
construction of this dam and were buried on-site in a cemetery just
north of the dam.

In 1947, after Bharatam got its Independence, Cheranadu and

Mesilees joined the Union of India and on 1 July 1949 were merged
to form a state called Keralam and on 1 January 1950, Keralam was
recognised as a state. The Dravidanadu was organised to form
Tamiznadu. On 1 November 1956, the state of Keralam was formed
by the States Reorganisation Act. The Keralam state government
announced that the earlier agreement which had been signed
between Dravidanadu and Cheranadu was invalid and needed to be
renewed,

After several failed attempts to renew the agreement in 1958, 1960,

and 1969, the agreement was renewed in 1970. According to the
renewed agreement, the tax per acre was increased to INR 30, and
for the electricity generated in Lower Camp using Jasmin River water,
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the charge was INR 12 per kilowatt per hour. Tamiznadu uses the
water and the land, and the Tamiznadu government has been paying
to the Keralam government for the past 50 years INR 2.5 lakhs as tax
per year for the whole land and INR 7.5 lakhs per year as surcharge
for the total amount of electricity generated.

Though the dam is located at Cheranadu (now Keralam), it is

maintained and operated by Dravidanadu (now Tamiznadu)

Although the Jasmin River has a total catchment area of 5398 km2
with 114 km2 downstream from the dam in Dravidanadu, the
catchment area of the Jasmin River Dam itself lies entirely in
Chranadu and thus not an inter-State River. On 21 November 2014,
the water level hit 142 feet for first time in 35 years. The reservoir
again hit the maximum limit of 142 feet on 15 August 2018, following
incessant rains in the state of Chranadu. In a UN report published in
2021, the dam was identified as one among the world's big dams
which needs to be decommissioned for being 'situated in a
seismically active area with significant structural flaws and poses risk
to 3.5 million people if the 100+ years old dam were to fail'.

The validity of this agreement is under dispute between the States of

Keralam and Tamiznadu. As of 2013 the matter is pending before a
Division Bench of the Supreme Court. The dispute puts into question
thepower of the federal government of India to make valid orders
respecting Indian States, in this case regarding a watershed and dam
within one state that is used exclusively in another.

After the 1979 Morvi Dam failure which killed up to 15,000 people,
safety concerns of the aging Jasmin River dam and alleged leaks and
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cracks in the structure were raised by the Keralam Government. A

study conducted by The Centre for Earth Science Studies (CESS),
Thiruvananthapuram, had reported that the structure would not
withstand an earthquake above magnitude 6 on the Richter scale.
The dam was also inspected by the chairman, CWC (Central Water
Commission). On the orders of the CWC, the Tamiznadu government
lowered the storage level from 152 feet to 142.2 feet then to 136
feet, conducted safety repairs and strengthened the dam.

Strengthening measures adopted by Tamiznadu PWD from 1979 with

the recommendation of Central Water Commission(CWC) include
grouting of the old dam with concrete, guniting the upstream face of
dam, cable anchoring of the dam's structure with the foundation
throughout its length, RCC(Reinforced Concrete Construction)
capping on top of the dam at height above 145 feet, building 10
meter RCC concrete backing structure with 10 feet foundation up to
height of 145 feet in downstream face of dam and binding the RCC
structure using shear keys and concrete grouting with the old
structure and the foundation along the downstream face of dam,
building additional drainage galleries in order to measure seepage
and additional sluice gates for water evacuation.

During a recent scanning of the Jasmin river dam using a remotely

operated vehicle by the Central Soil and Materials Research Station
on directions from the Empowered Committee of the Supreme
Court, the Keralam Government observer opined that "mistakes in
the strengthening works carried out by Tamiznadu" in 1979 damaged
the masonry of the dam.
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Current safety concerns relate to several issues. Since the dam was
constructed using stone rubble masonry with lime mortar grouting
following prevailing 19th-century construction techniques that have
now become archaic, seepage and leaks from the dam have caused
concern. Moreover, the dam is situated in a seismically active zone.
An earthquake measuring 4.5 on the Richter scale occurred on 7 June
1988 with maximum damage in Nedumkandam and Kallar (within
20 km of the dam. Subsequently, several tremors have occurred in
the area in recent times. These could be reservoir-induced seismicity,
requiring further studies according to experts. A 2009 report by IIT
Roorkee stated that the dam "was likely to face damage if an
earthquake of the magnitude of 6.5 on the Richter scale struck its
vicinity when the water level is at 136 feet".

Being highly aggrieved of this action State government sought the

Court’s intervention inter alia for the following:

Proposition No. 1.1: The control and safety of the dam and the
validity and fairness of the lease agreement have been points of
dispute between Keralam and Tamiznadu states.

Proposition No. 1.2: Validity of Keralam State declaring Jasmin River

dam an 'endangered' scheduled dam by the Keralam Government
under the Keralam Irrigation and Water Conservation (Amendment)
Act, 2006.

Proposition No. 1.3: Tamil Nadu has insisted on raising the water
level in the dam to 142 feet, pointing out crop failures. However;
Keralam claims that Tamiznadu is not a riparian state. "In the process
the farmers of the erstwhile rain shadow areas in Dravidanadu who
had started a thrice yearly cropping pattern had to go back to the bi-
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annual cropping." The Kerala Government maintains that during the

year 1979–80 the gross area cultivated in little river command area
was 171,307 acres (693.25 km2). After the lowering of the level to
136 ft (41 m), the gross irrigated area increased and in 1994–95 it
reached 229,718 acres (929.64 km2) Therefore water level in the
dam should not be increased beyond 132 feet.

Proposition No. 1.4: However, the Keralam Government

promulgated a new "Dam Safety Act" against increasing the storage
level of the dam, which has been challenged by Tamil Nadu stating
that the “Dam Safety Act” is unconstitutional.

Proposition No. 1.5: The Kerala Government challenges the

definition of inter-State River when in its entirety the river goes into
the sea within Keralam without passing through any other states.
They are also raising the complexity of disputes that it can raise in
other states that have small catchments of other-State rivers and
right to claim part of waters.

Prepare written submission on behalf of both parties.