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Fish kill in Periyar triggers call against river sand mining
The mass death of fish in the Edayar stretch of the Periyar last week has prompted environmentalists to once again raise voice against the government’s decision to mine sand from river beds after a gap of nearly a decade. Though sand mining has not been carried out in the State since 2016 for want of environmental clearance, river protection activists feel that any move in this direction will not…
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Fish death reported in Chithrapuzha, say activists
Nadi Samrakshana Samithi, a group of volunteers for protection of rivers, alleged that with the rainy season setting in factories located along river shores have begun to discharge untreated effluents into the waters. General secretary of the Samithy T.N. Prathapan and activist M.N. Giri said in a statement that fish deaths had been reported from Chithrappuzha close on the heels of the massive…
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Reports on massive fish kill in Periyar to be submitted on May 25
Committees constituted under government’s direction to conduct preliminary examination of the massive fish death in a tributary of the Periyar near Pathalam, Kalamassery, on May 21 (Tuesday) will submit report on May 25 (Saturday). Long and short term actions would be taken on the basis of the reports, said industries minister P. Rajeeve here on May 23 (Thursday). The district administration and…
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Another mass fish kill in Periyar River in Kerala after suspected effluent release
Dead fish found floating on the Periyar river in Ernakulam in Kerala on May 21 morning. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement A mass fish kill was reported in the Periyar river on May 20 night following suspected release of effluents from industries in the Eloor-Edayar industrial area in Ernakulam district of Kerala. Dead fish was found floating on a large-scale on May 21 morning from near the…
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11-year-old visually-challenged Ibin conquers Periyar in the company of his teacher
11-year-old visually-challenged Ibin conquers Periyar in the company of his teacher
Swimming across the deepest stretch of Periyar on Thursday morning, 11-year-old Ibin C. Thomas never for once looked daunted.
Neither could anyone gauge that the youngster who was calmly wading through the water was visually-challenged. For the seventh standard student from the School for Blind, Aluva, who fought the loss of sight at the age of four to make his mark in arts and cultural field,…
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SC asks panel to reduce water level at Mullaperiyar dam by three feet
The Supreme Court today asked the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) and a sub-committee set up by Kerala to deal with the flood situation in the state to coordinate and explore the possibility of reducing the water level at the Mullaperiyar Dam by three feet.
A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice D Y Chandrachud asked Kerala and Tamil Nadu to abide by the directions given by NCMC on the rehabilitation of displaced people and the reduction of water level from the existing 142 feet to 139 feet at the dam.
The bench observed that it was not an expert to deal with such severe natural calamity and was leaving to the executive to contain the crisis.
The top court asked Kerala to submit the report on the steps taken on disaster management and rehabilitation measures.
The death toll in the monsoon fury in the southern state has crossed 167, while rains and flood water have caused extensive damage.
Rise in flood waters in Periyar River due to the rains and opening of the shutters of all major dams including Mullaperiyar, Cheruthoni, part of Idukki reservoir and Idamalayar, have severely affected the lives of people in downstream areas.
Kerala rains: Two more shutters of Cheruthoni Dam opened, death toll 26
As heavy rains continued to lash various parts of Kerala, two more shutters of the Cheruthoni Dam, part of the Idukki Reservoir, were opened on Friday as the water level touched 2,401 feet.
For the first time in the last 26 years, a shutter of the Cheruthoni Dam was opened on Thursday and two more were opened at 7 am.
The full reservoir level is 2,403 feet and storage capacity is 69,268 Mcft and storage percentage is 97.61 per cent.
The South-west monsoon has been vigorous over Kerala resulting in heavy rains in various parts of the state since the past two days.
So far 26 people have been killed, including 11 in high range Idukki in landslips on Thursday as rain continued to pound the southern state.
Idukki has received 129.80 mm rainfall.With water levels rising in various dams and reaching almost maximum capacity, shutters of at least 22 reservoirs in the state have READ MORE
Mullaperiyar Dam – a disaster waiting to happen
Alongside Mosul Dam (http://on.fb.me/20s2Nyd) the Mullaperiyar Dam is one of the most dangerous dam structures in the world. It is a masonry gravity dam in the South Indian state of Kerala and was constructed between 1887 and 1895. A gravity dam is made out of concrete or stone masonry and is designed to hold back the water by primarily utilizing the weight of the material itself. A gravity dam is built so that each section is stable and independent of any other part of the dam.
The structure dams up the Periyar River which has a catchment area of 5398 square kilometers in total. Only 114 square kilometers of that area lie in the state of Tamil Nadu whereas the catchment area of the dam lies entirely in the state of Kerala.
The Mullaperiyar Dam has a height of 53 meters from the foundation and a length of 366 meters. Its front and rear faces are built with uncoursed rubble masonry with a lime surkhi (burnt brick powder and a mixture of sugar and calcium oxide) concrete hearting. The dam was made using old technology and has gone through several repair works. During the 1980s a concrete backing of 10 meters width was attached to the old dam on the downstream side to strengthen the old structure.
The story of the dam begins in October 1886 where a lease indenture for 999 years was made between the Maharaja of Travancore and the British Secretary of State for India. The agreement granted full power and liberty to the Secretary of State to construct on the land. The lease provided the British the rights over "all the waters" of the Mullaperiyar for an annual rent. When India attained independence the contract was renewed by the governments of Kerala (which came to represent what was earlier the princely state of Travancore) and Tamil Nadu in 1970 where the tax per acre was increased. Tamil Nadu uses the water and the land and has been paying to the Kerala government for the past 50 years.
After a couple of minor earthquakes in 1979 the dam’s security started to be questioned. The Mullaperiyar Dam was made using old technology and much of the building material used has been leached out. According to Kerala the dam is in a perilous state and threatens the lives of 3.5 million people in the state. Tamil Nadu on the other hand states that the dam is mostly invulnerable. If the dam were demolished it would lead to a major drought and to water scarcity in five districts of the state of Tamil Nadu.
The dispute between the two states has been going on for many years and came to Supreme Court in 2006. Tamil Nadu is against building a new dam for fear of losing its water supply and Kerala is concerned about the safety of their people. Kerala also has remarked that the lease agreement is unfair and has challenged its validity in the Supreme Court. Tamil Nadu still has the full right over the control of the dangerous dam in the state of Kerala. Until this day the matter is still being debated.
Xandi
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