THENI: A 10-day underwater inspection of the Mullaiperiyar dam, using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to examine the dam’s structural integrity, is set to commence on Monday (December 22), in the presence of officials from the public works departments of Kerala and TN. A seven-member expert team will carry out the inspection, which is estimated to cost nearly Rs 25 lakh, according to officials.
An official associated with the dam told TNIE that the TN Water Resources Department received the ROV from the Central Soil and Materials Research Station, New Delhi, functioning under the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti.
“As per the Supreme Court’s directions and based on the decisions made at the Central Monitoring Committee meeting, an underwater inspection is being carried out at the Mullaiperiyar dam for the second time after 14 years,” he said, pointing out to the 2011 inspection, during which the submerged portion of the structure, including the upstream face and structural joints, was examined in a phased manner.
Further, the official said ROVs are crucial for underwater dam inspections as they enable safer, more efficient ways to examine the structural integrity by detecting cracks, erosion, spalling, corrosion, and material loss on the upstream and downstream faces, piers, and abutments, adding that the findings of the 2011 inspection had enabled them to carry out maintenance works.