Water level in Mullaperiyar dam reaches 136 ft, residents to be relocated

IDUKKI: The water level in Mullaperiyar dam rose to 136 feet. Water started flowing to the spillway shutters of the dam. About 1,700 people living in low-lying areas including Vandiperiyar and Vallakkadavu will be relocated.

The residents will be relocated as per the alert directive of Tamil Nadu. The water level in the Mullaperiyar dam rose to 136 feet last night. Idukki district collector H Dinesh told a media that it is safe to open before the water level reaches 138 feet.

The maximum storage capacity of the dam is 142 feet. The state government had the other day asked Tamil Nadu to take steps to spill the water of the Mullaperiyar dam. Concerned over the rising water level, chief secretary Biswas Mehta wrote to his counterpart in Tamil Nadu requesting to release water in a phased manner when the level in the dam reaches 136 feet. The chief secretary asked Tamil Nadu chief secretary to release water through a tunnel from the dam to Vaiga dam.