With the reservoir water level reaching just one foot below the maximum storage mark, the 117-year-old Mullaperiyar dam in Kerala’s Idukki district developed leaks at a minimum of six spots spreading anxiety across the downstream areas even as landslips continued to occur in the mountainous district for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday.
The panic among the people was compounded by the rapidly rising water level in the giant Idukki hydel reservoir which was designed to contain the excess water flowing down from the Mullaperiyar dam. The State on Wednesday witnessed a respite from heavy rain for the first time in five days but that had no effect on the heavy water inflow into the two reservoirs.
The Idukki district Collector on late Wednesday morning issued warning to the people living on the banks of river Periyar to remain on alert as the water level in the Mullaperiyar reservoir touched the 135-feet mark. The maximum permissible water level of the surki-concrete dam built with outdated construction technology is 136 feet.
Though rains had abated in the catchment areas of the Mullaperiyar dam, there was no drop in the water inflow into the dam. Water was flowing into the reservoir at a rate of 3,600 cubic feet per second and drainage rate was only 1,900 cubic feet per second. Tamil Nadu is drawing the entire water of the Mullaperiyar reservoir as per a 127-year-old agreement.
Water would rush from the Mullaperiyar dam through its shutters into the 60-sq km, three-dam Idukki reservoir system once the water level touched the 136 feet-mark. However, doubts were being expressed over the ability of the Idukki dam to contain this water as the level in it had already risen to 2,393.5 feet while the capacity is 2,403 feet.
The panic among the people in the downstream areas intensified also because of reports that landslides had occurred on either side of the hillock that formed the ‘saddle dam’ of the Kulamavu dam, one of the three dams of the Idukki hydel reservoir system, following heavy rain. It is said that a road running over the hillock had developed wide cracks.
The Intelligence had reported the weakness of the saddle dam several times earlier but the Kerala State Electricity Board, the Idukki reservoir’s custodian, had allegedly chosen to neglect the warning. Also, water seepage at the base of the hill near the Kulamavu dam had increased after the water level in the reservoir rose, adding to the anxiety of the people living in the valley.
Shutters of several dams in the State that had been lifted following heavy rain since last weekend still remained open. The water level in the Malampuzha reservoir in Palakkad district touched the 114-metre mark on Wednesday while the maximum level was 115.06 metres. The Palakkad district administration said the dam’s shutters could be lifted any time.
At the same time, landslips were reported on Wednesday also from several places in Idukki district where nearly 50 slips of varying intensity had occurred since Monday. A 16,000-sq metre block of soil slid off a hill at the tribal settlement area of Naliani near Veliyamattam in the district on Wednesday morning. As many as 40 Adivasi families had to be shifted to safer places.
landslip occurred also on the Kochi-Dhanushkodi National Highway near Neryamangalam on Wednesday. A portion of the road slipped into the ravine below leading to suspension of traffic along the route. A massive landslide on the same road at Cheeyappara between Neryamangalam and Adimali on Monday had led to the loss of five lives.
Paddy cultivation in 250 acres of land was washed away by floodwaters in Kuttanad, Kerala’s Rice Bowl in Alappuzha district, after a breach in a barrage. Though Kuttanad had not been experiencing heavy rain in the past two days, the flooding occurred due to the heavy flow of water from the mountains of eastern Kerala.