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Although rain has subsided across the State, flood warnings remain, especially in low-lying regions of Central Kerala where rivers have breached the banks
Although rain has subsided across the State, flood warnings remain, especially in low-lying regions of Central Kerala where rivers have breached the banks
On Thursday, several places in Kerala were looking at a potential repeat of the devastating 2018 floods, with rivers overflowing and a series of landslides. However, the intensity of rainfall has reduced on Friday and Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has removed red alerts from all districts. Nevertheless, parts of Central Kerala, especially in low-lying Kuttanad region, are under water.
The severity of Thursday’s situation was highlighted by the large-scale evacuation of people living on the banks of the Chalakudy river in the Thrissur district as the weather predictions suggested a large amount of water will have to be released from the Peringalkuthu reservoir, which would receive excess inflow from dams that are further upstream in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. However, the worst did not come to pass as rainfall subsided, and the river has not risen in a way that the district administration had feared.
Still, the State government is exercising caution and is preparing for controlled release of water from some of the dams to avoid any future emergencies if rainfall intensifies in their catchment areas in the next few days.
Here are the live updates:
Kerala
Pinarayi Vijayan requests M.K. Stalin to regulate Mullaperiyar water level
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan
| Photo Credit: PTI
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan have sent a letter to his Tamil Nadu counterpart M.K. Stalin seeking help to control the water level in the Mullaperiyar dam, which is in Kerala’s Idukki district, but is managed by Tamil Nadu. Mr. Vijayan’s letter comes against the dam management’s decision to raise the barrier’s spillway shutters by 12.30 p.m. on Friday, and in it he requests CM Stalin to “give directions to authorities concerned to ensure that the outflow/discharge from the dam is more than the inflow, taking into consideration the heavy rainfall in the catchment area of Mullaperiyar Dam”.
The dam will release 534 cubic feet of water in the initial phase and incrementally increase the discharge to 1000 cubic feet by 2.30 p.m.
Idukki
Three shutters of Mullaperiyar dam to be opened
As the water level have reached 136 ft in Mullaperiyar dam in Idukki district, Kerala’s Minister for Water Resources Roshy Augustine has informed that water will be released from the reservoir by raising three shutters by 30 cm at 11:30 p. m. today. This will likely increase the water level in the Idukki reservoir downstream. He informed the press that any decision to open the Idukki dam will be taken after considering the water level in the downstream areas of Periyar river that passes through some of the most populous regions in Kerala.
Also read: Explained | What is the controversy over Mullaperiyar?
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