Mullaperiyar Dam
The Mullaperiyar
Dam or Mullaiperiyar Dam is a masonry gravity dam on the Periyar River in the Indian state of Kerala. It is located 881 m (2,890 ft) above mean sea level,
on the Cardamom Hills of the Western Ghats in Thekkady, Idukki District of Kerala, South India.
It was constructed
between 1887 and 1895 by John Pennycuick to divert water eastwards to the
Madras Presidency area (present-day Tamil Nadu). It has a height of 53.6 m (176 ft) from the
foundation, and a length of 365.7 m (1,200 ft). The Periyar National Park in Thekkady
is located around the dam's reservoir. The dam is located in Kerala on the
river Periyar, but is
operated and maintained by Tamil Nadu state.
Although the
Periyar River has a total catchment area of 5398 km2 with
114 km2 in Tamil Nadu the catchment area of the Mullaperiyar Dam
itself lies entirely in Kerala. By reports on 21 November 2014,
Mullaperiyar water level touches 142 feet for first time in 35 years.
Etymology
Earlier known as
the Periyar Dam as it was basically meant to dam the Periyar River, the
present name Mullaperiyar is derived from a portmanteau of Mullayar River and Periyar River, at the confluence of which the dam
is located
Purpose
The Periyar river
which flows westward of kerela to Arabian sea was diverted eastwards to flow towards the Bay of Bengal to provide water to the
arid rain shadow region
of Madurai in Madras Presidency which was in dire need of a
greater supply of water than the small Vaigai River could provide. The dam created the Periyar Thekkady
reservoir, from which water was diverted eastwards via a tunnel to augment the
small flow of the Vaigai River. The Vaigai was dammed by the Vaigai Dam to provide a source for irrigating large tracts around Madurai. Initially the dam waters were used only for the irrigation of
68,558 ha (169,411 acres).
Currently, the
water from the Periyar (Thekkady) Lake created by the dam, is diverted through
the water shed cutting and a subterranean tunnel to Forebay Dam near
Kumily (Errachipalam) in Tamil Nadu. From the Forebay dam, hydel pipe lines
carry the water to the Periyar Power Station in Lower Periyar, Tamil
Nadu. This is used for power generation (175 MW capacity) in the Periyar Power
Station. From the Periyar Power Station, the water is let out into Vairavanar
river and then to Suruliyar and from Suruliyar to Vaigai Dam.
Design
The Mullaperiyar
Dam is a gravity dam made with
concrete prepared from limestone and "surkhi" (burnt brick powder), and faced with
rubble.
Gravity dams use
their weight and the force of gravity to support the reservoir and remain
stable. The main dam has a maximum height of 53.6 m (176 ft) and
length of 365.7 m (1,200 ft). Its crest is 3.6 m (12 ft)
wide while the base has a width of 42.2 m (138 ft). It consists of a
main dam, spillway on its left
and an auxiliary dam (or "baby dam") to the right.
Its reservoir can
withhold 443,230,000 m3 (359,332 acre·ft) of water, of which
299,130,000 m3 (242,509 acre·ft) is active (live) storage.
History
The construction of
Mullaperiyar Dam was initiated in the year 1887. It took a few years to
complete the dam construction. Sadly making the great efforts of British Corps
of Royal Engineers go vain, the first dam was washed off by floods. Thus the
dam was completed in their second attempt after eight years i.e. in the year
1895 under the leadership of Pennycuick.
River Periyar's
flow was directed to the west. The British found that many of the barren
regions - including districts like Madurai, Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga and Theni
in Tamil Nadu could turn into fertile lands if the river flows through them.
And Mullaperiyar dam was thus their solution for this issue.
Thus the dam being
built mainly for the water and irrigation requirements of Tamil Nadu districts,
especially of the Madurai Temple town, the operational rights were conferred to
Tamil Nadu for nearly thousand years. Now too tourists who visit the site can
see tunnels that pierce the Western Ghats carrying water to the Tamil Nadu
districts.
In May 1887,
construction of the dam began. As per "The Military Engineer in
India" Vol II by Sandes (1935), the dam was constructed from lime stone
and "surkhi" (burnt brick powder and a mixture of sugar and calcium
oxide) at a cost of 104 lakhs, was 173 feet high and 1241 feet in
length along the top and enclosed more than 15 thousand million cubic feet of
water. Another source states that the dam was constructed of concrete and
gives a figure of 152 feet height of the full water level of the reservoir,
with impounding capacity of 10.56 thousand million cubic feet along-with a
total estimated cost of 84.71 lakh.
The construction
involved the use of troops from the 1st and 4th battalions of the Madras Pioneers as well as Portuguese carpenters from Cochin 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. Due to the coffer dam failures, the British stopped funding
the project. Officer Pennycuick raised funds
by selling his wife's jewelry to continue the work. In Madurai, Major Pennycuick's statue has been
installed at the state PWD office and his photographs are found adorning walls
in people’s homes and shops. In 2002, his great grandson was honored in
Madurai, a function that was attended by thousands of people.
The dam created a
reservoir in a remote gorge of the Periyar river situated 3,000 feet above the
sea in dense and malarial jungle, and from the northerly arm of this manmade
water body, 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 side of the watershed and into a natural ravine and so onto the Vaigai 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 present-day Theni, Madurai District, Sivaganga District and Ramanathapuram districts of Tamil Nadu, then under British rule as part of Madras Province (Sandes,
1935).
The Periyar
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 finished". 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 2012, it was
announced that a memorial dedicated to dam engineer Pennycuick would be
erected at the dam site.
Feasibility studies
The unique idea of harnessing
the westward flowing water of the Periyar river and diverting it to the
eastward flowing Vaigai river was first explored in 1789 by Pradani Muthirulappa
Pillai, a minister of the Ramnad king Muthuramalinga Sedhupathy, who
gave it up as he found it to be expensive. The location of the dam had
first been scouted by Captain J. L. Caldwell, Madras Engineers (abbreviated as
M.E.) in 1808 to reconnoitre the feasibility of providing water from the
Periyar River to Madurai by a tunnel through the mountains. Caldwell discovered
that the excavation needed would be in excess of 100 feet in depth and the
project was abandoned with the comment in his report as "decidedly
chimerical and unworthy of any further regard".
The first attempt
at damming the Periyar with an earthen dam in 1850 was given up due to demands
for higher wages by the labour citing unhealthy living conditions. The
proposal was resubmitted a number of times and in 1862, Captain J. G. Ryves,
M.E., carried out a study and submitted proposals in 1867 for another earthwork
dam, 62 feet high. The matter was debated by the Madras Government and the
matter further delayed by the terrible famine of 1876-77. Finally, in 1882, the
construction of the dam was approved and Major John Pennycuick, M.E., placed in
charge to prepare a revised project and estimate which was approved in 1884 by
his superiors.
Lease
On 29 October 1886,
a lease indenture for 999 years was made between the Maharaja of Travancore, Visakham Thirunal Rama Varma and the
British Secretary of State for India for Periyar Irrigation Works. The lease
agreement was signed by Dewan of Travancore V Ram Iyengar and State Secretary
of Madras State J C
Hannington.
This lease was made
after 24 years negotiation between the Maharaja and the British. The lease
indenture granted full right, power and liberty to the Secretary of State for
India to construct make and carry out on the leased land and to use exclusively
when constructed, made and carried out, all such irrigation works and other
works ancillary thereto. 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 per year. The lease provided the British the rights over "all
the waters" of the Mullaperiyar and its catchment basin, for an annual rent of 40,000.
In 1947,
after Indian Independence, after British
India was partitioned in 1947 into India and Pakistan, Travancore and Cochin
joined the Union of India and on 1 July 1949 were merged to form
Travancore-Cochin. On 1 January 1950 (Republic Day), Travancore-Cochin was recognized
as a state. The Madras Presidency was organized to form Madras State in 1947.
On 1 November 1956,
the state of Kerala was formed by the States Reorganization Act merging the
Malabar district, Travancore-Cochin (excluding four southern taluks, which were merged with Tamil Nadu), and the taluk of Kasargod, South Kanara. The Kerala
state government announced that the earlier agreement which had been signed
between British Raj and Travancore agreement 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 when C Achutha Menon was Kerala Chief Minister. According
to the renewed agreement, the tax per acre was increased to 30, and for
the electricity generated in Lower Camp using Mullaperiyar water, the charge
was 12 per kilo Watt per hour. Tamil Nadu uses the water and the land, and
the Tamil Nadu government has been paying to the Kerala government for the past
50 years. 2.5 lakhs as tax per year for the whole land and 7.5 lakhs
per year as surcharge for the total amount of electricity generated. The
validity of this agreement is under dispute between the States of Kerala and
Tamil Nadu. As of 2013 the matter is pending before a Division Bench of the
Supreme Court. The dispute puts into question the power 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.
Protected area
The Periyar National Park in Thekkady, a protected area of Kerala, is located around
the dam's reservoir, the 26 km2 (10 sq mi) Periyar Lake. 62
different kinds of mammals have been
recorded in Periyar, including many threatened ones. Periyar is a highly
protected tiger reserve and had an
estimated 53 tigers (2010) in the
reserve.
Declared an elephant reserve on 2 April 2002, the
population of Indian elephants in 2005 was estimated at
1100, however Periyar suffers greatly from poaching of elephant being the
worst affected of South Indian sanctuaries.
Other mammals found
here include gaur, Bison, sambar (horse
deer), barking deer, mouse deer, Dholes (Indian wild
dogs), mongoose, foxes and leopards. Four species of primates are found at Periyar - the rare Lion-tailed macaque, the Nilgiri Langur, the common langur, and the Bonnet Macaque. According to a report by the Kerala
Forest Research Institute, the protected area surrounding the dam and reservoir
is classified as a biodiversity hot spot.
Dam Safety
After the
1979 Morvi Dam failure which killed
up to 15,000 people, safety concerns of the aging Mullaperiyar dam's and
alleged leaks and cracks in the structure were raised by the Kerala
Government. A Kerala government institution, 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 Tamil Nadu 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 Tamil Nadu PWD from 1979 onwards include cable anchoring of
the dam's structure and RCC backing for the front slope. During a recent
scanning of the Mullaperiyar 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 Kerala Government observer opined that
"mistakes in the strengthening works carried out by Tamil Nadu" in
1979 damaged the masonry of the dam.
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). Consequently, 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".
Interstate Dispute
The government of
Tamil Nadu has proposed an increase in the storage level of the dam from the
currently maintained 136 feet to 142 feet. The Kerala government has opposed
this move, citing safety concerns for the more than hundred year old bridge and
especially for the thickly populated districts downstream. Tamil Nadu is the
custodian of the dam and its surrounding areas.
The control and
safety of the dam and the validity and fairness of the lease agreement have
been points of dispute between Kerala
and Tamil Nadu states. Supreme Court judgment came in 27 February 2006, allowing Tamil Nadu to raise the level of the dam to 152 ft (46 m)
after strengthening it. Responding to it, Mullaperiyar dam was declared an
'endangered' scheduled dam by the Kerala Government under the disputed Kerala
Irrigation and Water Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2006.
For Tamil Nadu, the
Mullaperiyar dam and the diverted Periyar waters act as a lifeline for Theni,
Madurai, Sivaganga and Ramnad districts, providing water for irrigation and
drinking, and also for generation of power in Lower Periyar Power Station.
Tamil Nadu has insisted on exercising its unfettered rights to control the dam
and its waters, based on the 1886 lease agreement. Kerala has pointed out the
unfairness in the 1886 lease agreement and has challenged its validity.
However, safety concerns posed by the 119-year old dam to the safety of the
people of Kerala in the event of a dam collapse have been the focus of disputes
from 2009 onwards. Kerala's proposal for decommissioning the dam and
constructing a new one has been challenged by Tamil Nadu.
Tamil Nadu has
insisted on raising the water level in the dam to 142 feet, pointing out crop
failures. One estimate states that "the crop losses to Tamil Nadu, because
of the reduction in the height of the dam, between 1980 and 2005 are a
whopping 40,000 crores. In the process the farmers of the erstwhile
rain shadow areas in Tamil Nadu who had started a thrice yearly cropping
pattern had to go back to the bi-annual cropping."
The Kerala
Government maintains that this is not true. During the year 1979–80 the gross
area cultivated in Periyar 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). The
Tamil Nadu government had increased its withdrawal from the reservoir, with
additional facilities to cater to the increased demand from newly irrigated
areas.
In 2006, the Supreme Court of India by its
decision by a three-member division bench, allowed for the storage level to be
raised to 142 feet (43 m) pending completion of the proposed strengthening
measures, provision of other additional vents and implementation of other
suggestions.
However, the Kerala Government promulgated a
new "Dam Safety Act" against increasing the storage level of the dam,
which has been challenged by Tamil Nadu on various grounds. The Supreme Court
issued notice to Kerala to respond, however did not stay the operation of the
Act even as an interim measure. The Court then advised the States to settle the
matter amicably, and adjourned hearing in order to enable them to do so. The
Supreme Court of India termed the act as not unconstitutional. Meanwhile,
the Supreme Court constituted a Constitution bench to hear the case considering
its wide ramifications.
The Kerala
Government states that it does not object to giving water to Tamil Nadu, their
main cause of objection being the dam's safety as it is 116 years old.
Increasing the level would add more pressure to be handled by already leaking
dam. Tamil Nadu wants the 2006 order of Supreme court be implemented so as to
increase the water level to 142 feet (43 m).
"For every
argument raised by Tamil Nadu in support of its claims, there is
counter-argument in Kerala that appears equally plausible. Yet, each time the
controversy gets embroiled in extraneous issues, two things stand out: One is
Kerala's refusal to acknowledge the genuine need of the farmers in the
otherwise drought-prone regions of Tamil Nadu for the waters of the
Mullaperiyar; the other is Tamil Nadu's refusal to see that it cannot rely on
or continue to expect more and more from the resources of another State to
satisfy its own requirements to the detriment of the other State. A solution
perhaps lies in acknowledging the two truths, but neither government can afford
the political repercussions of such a confession".
Tamil Nadu argues
that the latter is similar to tax revenues unfairly distributed to
underdeveloped states within India, to the detriment of the revenue producing
states, i.e., a form of wealth distribution. What we see here is a microcosm of
the bigger problem that India faces with China, which is building dams on
Brahmaputra. In May 2014, Supreme Court of India declared Kerala Irrigation and
Water Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2006 as unconstitutional. The Supreme
Court on Wednesday struck down the law passed by the Kerala Assembly on the
Mullaperiyar Dam that said that the water level cannot be increased beyond 135
feet. The court has ruled that Tamil Nadu can increase the water level to 142
feet.
The court has said
that there is no threat to the safety of the dam. The apex court has set up a
three-member committee to look into the restoration work at the dam and also
advise safety and security measures.
The Kerala
government's Dam safety Act of 2006 has been scrapped by the court. In Feb
20, 2015 Kerala Government Withdraws a plea seeking clarification on May 5,
2014 Judgment which the apex court had allowed the raising the water storage
level of the dam to 142 feet and go before the three-member Mullaperiyar
committee. The apex court had also rejected the plea for giving open court
hearing and said there was no reason to interfere with the judgment of its
five-judge Constitution Bench.
In an application,
the Tamil Nadu government said Kerala has defied the Supreme Court’s judgments
in "letter and spirit". Without mincing words, it accused the Kerala
government of harassment by denying Tamil Nadu officials free entry to carry
out routine periodical maintenance and repairs of the dam. The application
wants the Supreme Court to direct Kerala government to allow free access to
Tamil Nadu officials to the dam and its appurtenant structures to collect data
and change the weekly chart in the Mullakodi rainfall station. It said the
court should direct Kerala to allow Tamil Nadu to transport the machinery and materials
required for carrying out repairs.
Justice A.S. Anand Committee (The Empowered Committee)
On 18 February
2010, the Supreme Court decided to constitute a five-member empowered committee
to study all the issues of Mullaperiyar Dam and seek a report from it within
six months. The Bench in its draft order said Tamil Nadu and Kerala would
have the option to nominate a member each, who could be either a retired judge
or a technical expert. The five-member committee will be headed by former Chief
Justice of India A. S. Anand to go into all issues relating to the dam's safety and the
storage level. However, the then ruling party of Tamil Nadu, DMK, passed a
resolution that it not only oppose the apex court's decision to form the
five-member committee, but also said that the state government will not
nominate any member to it.
The then Tamil Nadu
Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi said that immediately after the
Supreme Court announced its decision to set up a committee, he had written to
Congress president asking the Centre to mediate between Kerala and Tamil Nadu
on Mullaperiyar issue. However, the then Leader of Opposition i.e., the present
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J. Jayalalithaa objected to the TN Government
move.
She said that this
would give advantage to Kerala in the issue. Meanwhile, Kerala Water Resources
Minister N. K. Premachandran told the
state Assembly that the State should have the right of construction, ownership,
operation and maintenance of the new dam, while giving water to Tamil Nadu on
the basis of a clear cut agreement. He also informed the media that Former
Supreme Court Judge Mr. K. T. Thomas will represent Kerala on the expert panel
constituted by Supreme Court.
On 8 March 2010,
Tamil Nadu told the Supreme Court that it was not interested in adjudicating
the dispute with Kerala before the special "empowered" committee
appointed by the apex court for settling the inter-State issue. However,
Supreme Court refused to accept Tamil Nadu's request to scrap the decision to
form the empowered committee. The Supreme Court also criticized the Union
Government on its reluctance in funding the empowered committee.
Setting at rest the
controversy over the safety of the 116-year-old Mullaperiyar dam, the Empowered
Committee, headed by the former Chief Justice of India A.S. Anand, has said it
is "structurally and hydrologically safe and Tamil Nadu can raise the
water level from 136 to 142 feet after carrying out certain repairs."
In its report
submitted to the Supreme Court on 25 April 2012, the committee is understood to
have said: "The dam is seismically safe." Last year's earth tremors
in that region "did not have any impact on the Mullaperiyar dam and the
Idukki reservoir and there was no danger to the safety of the two dams."
Construction of a new dam
Kerala enacted
the Kerala Irrigation and Water Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2006 to
ensure safety of all 'endangered' dams in the State, listed in the second schedule
to the Act. Section 62A of the Act provides for listing in the schedule,
"details of the dams which are endangered on account of their age,
degeneration, degradation, structural or other impediments as are
specified". The second schedule to the Act lists Mullaperiyar (dam)
constructed in 1895 and fixes 136 feet as its maximum water level. The Act
empowers Kerala Dam Safety Authority (Authority specified in the Act)
to oversee safety of dams in the State and sec 62(e) empowers the Authority to
direct the custodian (of a dam) "to suspend the functioning of any dam, to
decommission any dam or restrict the functioning of any dam if public safety or
threat to human life or property, so require". The Authority can conduct
periodical inspection of any dam listed in the schedule.
In pursuance of
Kerala's dam safety law declaring Mullaperiyar dam as an endangered dam, in
September 2009, the Ministry of Environment and Forests of Government of India
granted environmental clearance to Kerala for conducting survey for new dam
downstream. Tamil Nadu approached Supreme Court for a stay order against
the clearance; however, the plea was rejected. Consequently, the survey was
started in October 2009. On 9 September 2009 Govt. of Tamil Nadu stated that
there is no need for construction of a new dam by the Kerala Government, as the
existing dam after it is strengthened, functions like a new dam.
