Idukki (Kerala): Kerala yesterday decided to put off the opening of the sluice gates of a dam to release surplus water from the nearly-full Idukki reservoir, a spectacle that hundreds of people are waiting to see. The Idukki reservoir has three dams and its water level has reached 2401.66 feet.
“There is no reason for opening the shutters in the coming three days,” said K K Karuppankutty, chief engineer for dam safety, Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), yesterday.
When the water level touches 2,402.15 feet, the shutters will be opened, he said the day before.
“We are monitoring the water level on an hourly basis and from our inferences, we do not see the possibility of opening the shutters. But if need be, we will reconsider the decision,” said Karuppankutty.
If the shutters are indeed opened, it would be only the third time in the history of the reservoir, according to officials of the KSEB.
The shutters were earlier opened on October 29, 1981 and October 11, 1992.
With Onam holidays ending yesterday, there has been an unprecedented rush of people from districts like Kottayam, Ernakulam, Pathanamthitta and also from parts of Idukki to the areas near the dam to see the spectacle of the sluice gates being opened.
TV channel crews have also been camping in the area for the past two days to capture the moment on camera.
The Idukki reservoir, commissioned in 1975, is impounded by three dams: Idukki arch dam, the Kulamavu dam and the Cheruthoni dam.
Of the three, only the Cheruthoni dam has shutters.
The KSEB, meanwhile, is making the best use of the water in the reservoir as a record 18.19 million units of power was generated in one day.
Revenue authorities have opened 14 control rooms in and around the areas where the water would flow in case the shutters of the dam were opened. IANS
