Pilavakkal Dam, Vathirairuppu (Watrap), Virudhunagar

Pilavakkal Dam, Vathirairuppu (Watrap), Virudhunagar

Pilavakkal Dam is situated on the foot hills of Western Ghats in Virudhunagar District of Tamilnadu. Pilavakkal Dam is located at about 90 kms from Madurai and 45 kms from Virudunagar. The dam consists 2 divisions and they are the Kovilar and Periyar Dam. The capacity of the Periyar dam is 192 mcft and Kovilar Dam is 133 mcft. From October to December, the dam will be full of water. It is one of the popular picnic spots in Virudunagar district. There is a Children Park with all facilities.

Traveling to the location itself is exciting because of its unique location and the surrounding green paddy fields. Another unique point of this dam is its natural settings. It is surrounded by hills on 3 directions and a manmade wall on one direction. As activities you can go for boating or take a stroll on the hills and observe nature. But take care as to not go deep into the forest. The forest boasts of Bisons, deers and many species of snakes.

Watrap is the nearby town. The name Watrap is derived from the Tamil word Watiiyera iruppu which means “a place where the level of ground water never goes down”. The place suits this name because the whole area gets good rain from Southwest & Northeast monsoons. So it is only natural that a dam lies there.

Pilavakkal Dam is located at about 90 kms from Madurai and 45 kms from Virudunagar. Pilavakkal is reachable from Madurai & Srivilliputtur highroad. You should take a diversion near Krishnan Koil a place famous for engineering colleges and deemed University.