Opening date 1934 Height 37 m Length 1,700 m Architect Colonel W.M Ellis | Opened 1934 | |
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Similar Krishna Raja Sagara, Hogenakkal Falls, Kallanai Dam, Bhavanisagar Dam, Mettur Dam railway station | ||
Jalagandeswarar temple deep inside the mettur dam personal video
The Mettur Dam is one of the largest dams in India. Built in 1934, it was constructed in a gorge, where the Kaveri River enters the plains. It provides irrigation facilities to parts of Salem, the length of Erode, Namakkal, Karur, Tiruchirappali and Thanjavur district for 271,000 acres (110,000 ha) of farm land.
Contents
- Jalagandeswarar temple deep inside the mettur dam personal video
- Map of Mettur Dam China Park Mettur Tamil Nadu 636401
- History
- Water dispute
- References
Map of Mettur Dam, China Park, Mettur, Tamil Nadu 636401
The total length of the dam is 1,700 metres (5,600 ft). The dam creates Stanley Reservoir. The Mettur Hydro Electrical power project is also quite large. The dam, the park, the major hydroelectric power stations, and hills on all sides make Mettur a tourist attraction. Upstream from the dam is Hogenakal Falls. The maximum level of the dam is 120 ft (37 m) and the maximum capacity is 93.47 tmc ft.
Its capacity of 93.4 billion cubic feet (2.64 km3) is nearly twice that of its Karnataka counterpart of KRS; the dam is revered as the life and livelihood-giving asset of Tamil Nadu. It was built in-line with KRS Dam, which was designed by Sir M Vishveswariah in 1911 and completed in 1917 near Mysore.
History
The United Kingdom provided funds for the dam and evacuated the people of Nayambadi village where the dam was eventually sited. When the water level of the reservoir recedes, even now age-old Hindu temples and churches emerge from it as proof. Those people who migrated from Nayambadi have settled down in Martalli and other nearby villages in the Kollegal district of the state of Karnataka.
Water dispute
The Mettur Dam has received public attention since the latter half of the 20th century, and especially in the mid-1990s, due to the Kaveri River water dispute between the States of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Because of subsequent dams constructed across the Kaveri River in Karnataka, including the Kabini Dam, the Mettur Dam does not receive much water during lean seasons. As a result, the dam nearly goes dry during certain periods of the year, often when water is most needed by the farmers and the general public of the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. This has created serious disputes and tension between the neighbouring states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Governments of the respective states, the Supreme Court, and the Kaveri Tribunal have so far not been successful in resolving the dispute.