Tamil Nadu seems to have thrown caution to the winds when it opened eight spillway shutters of the Mullaperiyar dam on Monday night, according to Idukki Collector V. Ratheesan.
The Collector, who camped at Kumily on Monday to oversee the situation emerging out of the increasing water level in the dam, had requested the Tamil Nadu Public Works Department to issue an alert 12 hours in advance in case the shutters had to be opened. He had also cautioned the Tamil Nadu authorities against opening the shutters at night.
But at 8 p.m. on Monday, the shutters were opened — eight of them. Following a surge in the water level after heavy rain in the catchment area of the reservoir and in the upstream of the dam, Tamil Nadu could no longer maintain the water level below 142 ft, according to sources in the Kerala State Electricity Board.
Drawing water
Since Sunday night, Tamil Nadu had been drawing more water than the usual 511 cusecs to ensure that the dam level was maintained below the Supreme Court prescribed 142 ft. By Monday morning, it further increased the quantum and started releasing water through the Erachipalam stream.
But the neighbouring State’s Vaigai dam could not hold all the water in view of heavy rain in the upstream of the Vaigai reservoir. Though the water in the Vaigai dam was released in advance to store additional water from Mullaperiyar, once the inflow increased, Tamil Nadu could not hold on. It had only one option then: open the shutters of the Mullaperiyar dam, Mr. Ratheesan said.
