TIRUNELVELI: Assembly Speaker M. Appavu on Saturday appealed to Chief Minister MK Stalin to take steps to repatriate 28 Dinthakarai fishermen who had gone to Iran for fishing and were detained by the Bahraini coast guard. on September 11.

“Following the arrest, you (Stalin) submitted an appeal to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, urging the center to intervene. Despite this, the fishermen are yet to be released,” Appavu told Stalin in his letter.

In another letter, the spokesperson demanded diversion of surplus water from Kanniyakumari district to Radhapuram canal. “Every year, thousands of cubic feet of water from the Pazhayar in Kanniyakumari flows into the sea. To utilize this surplus water effectively, the CM had approved a project to divert it to the Radhapuram canal through a pumped water transfer system. An allocation of Rs 2 crore was sanctioned and a DPR of Rs 200.99 crore was prepared and submitted,” he said.

If implemented, the project would provide irrigation benefits to 52 ponds located within a 16-km radius around Kudankulam and its surrounding areas, Appavu said.