History of Mullaperiyar Dam.

Mullaperiyar Dam has been the talk of the town for a long time.

Although the Mullaperiyar Dam is located in the Idukki district, the fact remains that its entire use is in Tamil Nadu. Mullaperiyar water is used for power generation and irrigation in Tamil Nadu.

Dam is located in the Kumily panchayat of Peerimedu taluk. Thekkady Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is located around the reservoir of the dam.

The Mullaperiyar dam has been the subject of controversy between the two states after the Tamil Nadu need to raise the water level, But Kerala government said water level could not be raised as it would affect the safety of the dam.

If we look at the history of the dam, we have to go back to the 3rd century.


17th century, during the reign of King Muthuramalinga Sethupathi of Ramanad in Tamil Nadu. Since the king was a minor, the chiefs were in charge of the administration. Chief Mutirullappa Pillai, who had a long view on governance, was in full charge of the administration. Local water scarcity was a major challenge for the elderly who were developing agriculture and building roads to bring the place on the path of development. The Vaigai River in Ramanathapuram does not have enough water in summer. So is the drought in the land. The Periyar flows through the Travancore , which originates in the western part of the Western Ghats, where the Vaigai River originates. This water is flowing into the sea without being used.

During this time, Muthirullappa Pillai's eye was on Periyar. The first plan to divert the river water to the Ramanad region and divert it to the Vaigai River was made by Muthirullappa Pillai in 1789. He had a plan for this. But King Sethupathi, who took over the kingdom, later declared war on the British.

Mutirullappa Pillai's position was to rule the British well. The king and the prince parted ways over this issue. In 1795, they overthrew Muthuramalinga Sethupathi, who had fought against the British.

Water shortages in Theni, Madurai, Dindigul and Ramanathapuram, which were under the control of the Madras Presidency, were also a headache for the British. The region was prone to drought. But after the next Western Ghats, the Periyar overflows in Travancore . Travancore is lined with rivers and lakes. Thus, it was decided to divert the waters of the Periyar to the Vaigai River, which flows through the Western Ghats, Madurai and Ramanathapuram districts..

In 1808 Sir James Caldwell was commissioned to study it. Caldwell's report that this initiative will not be effective enough. But the British did not back down from their plan to divert water.

The study of Captain Faver later led to the construction of a small dam in 1809 to divert water. This was to divert the water through the tributaries of the Periyar River called Chinnamuliyar. Outbreaks appear to be exacerbated by the outbreak of malaria, with workers being forced to pay higher wages. In this case, the construction of the dam was halted.

The British devised various means to save the people who were suffering from lack of drinking water. In 1867, Major Ryves, the Madurai District Engineer, proposed another project to divert water from the Periyar. The plan was to build a 162-foot dam to divert water to the suruliyar, a tributary of the Vaigai River. The construction cost was Rs 17.49 lakh.

But it was abandoned due to the fact that it was not easy to temporarily retain water during the construction of the dam and the work would take a long time.

In 1870, when the plan was revised, the R Smith Dam was relocated and a new plan proposed. The purpose was to build a 175-foot-high dam and a 7,000-foot-long tunnel to carry water from the Periyar to the spiral. The estimated cost was Rs 53.99 lakh. But it was abandoned due to a technical problem discovered by General Walken, the chief engineer.

In 1882, Engineer Captain Pennycuick and R Smith were commissioned to submit a plan to supply water from the Periyar to the vaiga. The proposal was to study all the old plans and formulate new ones. Pennycuick reported accordingly. The Pennycuick project was submitted for a 155-foot-high dam. The bottom is 115.75 feet wide and the top is 12 feet wide. The construction cost of the dam is Rs 53 lakh. The estimate report was that the construction cost of the project would be refunded by 7% every year. Frustrated by the severe drought, the British government decided to build the dam according to a plan given by Pennycuick.

The Maharaja of Travancore had been informed by the British since 1862 about a plan to divert water from the Periyar. The then ruler of Travancore was Maharaja Visakha Thurunal. The king opposed this for some time. He told the British that permission would not be granted for the diversion project. Diwan Rama Iyengar was finally allowed to sign the contract for the construction of the Mullaperiyar Dam due to constant pressure and threat from the British. His words testified that the king had to surrender to guns and threats from the British. "It was with blood in my heart that I was allowed to sign the contract" Were the king's troubled words.

The Periyar Lease Deed for the construction of the Mullaperiyar Dam was signed on October 29, 1886. The agreement was signed by Divan rama iyengar for Travancore and state secretary John Child Hannyngton for Mathurashi state. Agreement to build a dam on the Mullaperiyar, a tributary of the Periyar River, to divert water from the Periyar.

According to the agreement, the rising water can be used up to 155 feet from the deepest point of the Periyar River. The agreement also states that the state of Madras has been given full authority to construct an irrigation project to use this water. 8000 acres of land around 155 feet of river and 100 acres of leased land for construction work.

The agreement states that all the power and rights to build the dam for the Periyar Irrigation Project have been given by the Madras Government. Contract for 999 years. If the Madras government intends to renew the contract, it will have to pay the lease again for 999 years. It was decided to pay Rs 40,000 to Travancore at the rate of Rs 5 per acre as lease amount. The water is for irrigation in Madurai and Ramanathapuram districts of Madras state. In the event of a dispute over the contract, the tribunal, comprising arbitrators or umpires from both sides, will handle.

The contract was signed in 1886, and construction of the dam began in September 1887, the following year. Completed in February 1896. With this the Periyar lake was formed. When the dam was built and the water flowed into the Vaigai River at will, the British authorities came up with the idea of ​​using the water to generate electricity. The draft was submitted in 1909 by Alfred Chatterton, Director of Industry, Madras. The work was started accordingly.

Travancore raised its voice against the generation of electricity contrary to the contract made only for irrigation. Attempts were made to prevent this. The issue was left to the arbitrator marks as per the terms of the contract. But arbitrators David Devadas and V S Subramanya Iyyer were at loggerheads. When the problem became unresolved, the decision was left to the umpire.

The umpire was sir Nalini Niranjan Chatergee who was the Bengal high court judge. Divan C P Ramaswami iyyer from Travancore and Sir Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar from the Government of Madras participated in the trial from January 1 to 5, 1941.

The verdict of the umpire was pronounced on May 12, 1941, which was in favor of Travancore. His ruling was that water should not be used for anything other than irrigation. He also ruled that the state of Madras has the sole right to generate electricity to carry water for irrigation purposes.

But the Madras government refused to face the verdict. They went ahead with power generation. In the wake of the verdict, Divan C P Ramaswami Iyyer stepped down to rescind the 1886 contract.

On July 21, 1947, he met the Viceroy Mountbatten in Delhi and filed a petition. Divan explaied everything happened there with Mountbatten. He also exposed the fraud in the contract.

According to Ramaswami Iyyer's report to the King of Travancore, he told the Viceroy that while the Madras government receives about Rs 25 lakh a year from water on a 999-year contract, Travancore receives only Rs 40,000 a year and that this inequality can no longer continue. According to the report, Viceroy confirmed that everything Ramaswamy said was true and that it could be remedied. But the ultimate victory was on the side of the British. Umpire's decision and the terms of the contract were complained of in the air and they began preparations for the construction of the power plant. The British Government approved the operation of Travancore to turn Periyar Lake into a National Park and also approved the operation of a boat on Periyar Lake for tourism..

Ever since India gained independence, Tamil Nadu has been trying to renew the Periyar lease agreement.

On November 9, 1958, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu had a discussion with the Chief Minister EMS. Later, Tamil Nadu made several changes to renew the agreement.

On July 4, 1960, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu had a discussion with the Chief Minister of Kerala Pattan A Thanu pillai.

On May 10, 1969, the Chief Minister again held discussions with EMS.

The renewed agreement was signed on May 29, 1970 when C Achutha Menon was the Chief Minister. Signed by Public Works Minister K S Shivasubramanya for Tamil Nadu and K P Vishwanathan Nayar for Kerala.

The renewed agreement maintained all the terms of the 1886 agreement and allowed the Periyar Power House to generate electricity using the Periyar dam. It was not made by amending the 1886 agreement

Earlier, the lease amount was increased from Rs 5 per acre to Rs 30 in the new contract. It also stipulated that the lease amount could be renewed every 30 years from the date of the contract. The renewed agreement had retroactive effect from 1954. The revised agreement stipulates that the Periyar Power House, which uses water from the Periyar, will be allowed to generate electricity for its own use only at the expense of Tamil Nadu.

42.17 acres of land in Kumily village has been leased to Tamil Nadu for power generation. The agreement stipulates that Tamil Nadu and Kerala should pay up to Rs 12 lakh per 1 KV per annum for power generation up to 350 lakh units. If it is more than 350 million, Rs 18 should be paid. 8860 units is 1 KV Year. According to this agreement, the lease amount was to be renewed in the year 2000 but it was not done.

Arguments over the safety of the dam began to surface after the 1961 floods.

Built using Surkhi mixture, this dam cannot withstand a strong flood. Therefore, at that time, the TIMES OF INDIA reported that the dam was a security threat to the people living in the lower reaches of the dam.

On May 7, 2014, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Tamil Nadu. This verdict was against Kerala. The water level will rise from 136 feet to 143 feet. The Supreme Court ruled that a three-member committee could be appointed to monitor the dam.

The Periyar lease agreement made in 1886 was actually disrupted when India became independent.

This is stated in the Indian Independence Act, 1947. Under Section 7 of the Act, all treaties between the princely states and British India were terminated. Therefore, Travancore's lease agreement with the British government, which ruled Madras, has no legal possibility. But in 1970, the old agreement was retained and amended to allow power generation. This has become a headache for Kerala forever.

"Think, seek, and you will surely find the answer"