IDUKKI: Taking into consideration heavy rainfall prediction, the Idukki district administration on Saturday morning opened one of the shutters of the Cheruthoni dam. It is for the second time that the shutters of the dam were opened in a span of two months. The shutter was opened when the water level reached 2387.92 feet.
Taking into account the heavy rainfall prediction for the state, the KSEB on Saturday morning decided to open one shutter of the Cheruthoni dam. “Fifty cumecs (cubic metre per second) of water is being released from the dam now,” said an officer with the Dam Safety Authority. The district administration authorities on Friday had warned those residing near the dam to take necessary precautions.
Besides, a high-level meeting was called by Idukki District Collector K Jeevan Babu to decide when the shutters would be opened. “The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had predicted heavy rain in the state on Saturday and Sunday and we expect heavy inflow into the dam in the coming days. The full reservoir level of the dam is 2,403 ft. But to control the water level in the dam, we decided to open the shutters,” the officer said. Meanwhile, Roshi Augustine MLA alleged the dam was opened without sounding a proper alert.
“The dam shutters should be opened only 12 hours after an alert is issued. People living downstream were unaware of the opening of the dam at 11 am on Friday,” he told mediapersons on Saturday adding there were severe lapses in making an announcement regarding this.
However, District Collector Jeevan Babu K said there were no such issues. “The dam was opened after communicating with the Electricity Minister and the KSEB chairman. Right now, it cannot be said how many days the shutter will be kept open,” he added.Earlier, the shutters of the dam were opened on August 9 when the water level reached 2,400 ft following heavy rain in the catchment areas. After the rain subsided, the shutters were closed in September.
Squally wind predicted
T’Puram: The IMD has predicted squally wind speed reaching 40-50 kmph gusting to 60 kmph very likely over Lakshadweep and southeast Arabian Sea on Sunday.The wind speed will gradually increase, becoming 60-70 kmph gusting to 80 kmph on Monday. The condition of the southeast and central Arabian Sea will become rough to very rough. Fishermen are advised not to venture into the deep sea areas of southeast and Lakshadweep area on Sunday and into east-central and west-central Arabian Sea from Sunday to Tuesday.