MULAPERIYAR DAM is a116year old gravity dam ,while constructed buy british across periyar life said to be just 50 years(1897-1947),survived 66 years again tamil nadu politicians are saying it will survive 999 year (not logical).Being earthquake prone area &22 tremors in less than eight months with the latest being 3.4 on the
Richter Scale. And for about 1.5 lakh people in the immediate downstream
of Mullaperiyar dam it’s nothing short of a death race.
So tamil bros please give up selfishness & allow contruction of new dam, for sake of humanity
With experts
predicting more tremors with epicentre close to the reservoir, the
safety of the dam has once again come under scanner. The repeated
tremors have put Kerala’s cause and the gravity of the situation before
the empowered panel.Of the 22 tremors, one measuring 3.8 on the Richter Scale on July 26 was the most significant one.Experts
have zeroed in on a pattern where the tremors are coming close to the
reservoir region. They have pointed out that an earthquake with a
magnitude of 5.5 or above could wreak havoc on Mullaperiyar.
Already
studies have indicated that even a mild tremor within a 16 km radius
upstream Mullaperiyar will create gravity acceleration and the dam will
not be able to withstand it.
Though Revenue Minister Thiruvanchoor
Radhakrishnan announced setting up of realtime monitoring stations, the
govt has not been planning rehabilitation of the thousands who could be
simply washed away if a stronger tremor hits the reservoir.
“We
haven’t started moving out, where will we go? How safe is this region?
As many as 40 lakh people would be affected if something drastic
happens. There are close to two lakh people staying along in 28-km
stretch from Vallakkadavu to Idukki. As usual government has been
dilly-dallying,” pointed out Mullaperiyar Samara Samithi president C P
Roy.
With repeated tremors the dam has also seen leakages on its surface.
“It’s
evident that this region is prone to seismic activities. Going by the
pattern, we have seen that the tremors began from 2.8 and has reached up
to 3.8 on Richter Scale. Also it has come close to 32 km from the
reservoir. The tremors have also reached on to the surface. That’s why
we have designed the new dam with 0.21 g, which can withstand the
seismic activities,” said Mullaperiyar Cell chairman M K Parameswaran
Nair.
The cell has already filed a list of recent tremors mentioning
the date and intensity before the empowered panel. The latest one will
also be submitted before the panel, which is scheduled to meet on Dec 5.