Thiruvananthapuram: Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala has reiterated the UDF demand for a judicial enquiry into the recent flood havoc, alleging that the magnitude of the disaster could be much less if only the government and its agencies had exercised maximum caution and complied with established procedures for opening dam shutters and drafting a well thought-out evacuation plan.
In a statement here on Tuesday, Mr Chennithala said the Government and the Kerala State Electricity Board Limited had lifted shutters without complying with the Dam Safety Organisation stipulations, the Reservoir Control Schedule, the release procedure and the Gate Operation Schedule.
There were sufficient indications of copious rainfall in catchment areas, especially in Idukki, since July-end. There was also the possibility of Mullaperiyar filling up and water coursing to Idukki. Power Minister M M Mani had said on July 27 that the trial run would start when the storage touched 2397 feet. But the government continued to wait till the reservoir level touched 2403 ft, because the KSEBL was bent on ensuring maximum storage for power generation.
But the Chief Minister maintains that the dam was not opened because there was a decrease in the rainfall. The fact is that rains had picked up since July 31 and KSEB's records show rainfall gained momentum in August. Finally, the first shutter opened on August 9, two more at 7:30 a.m. the next day, fourth by 11 am and the fifth at 3 pm, all contributing to 7.5 lakh litres per second discharge, aggravating the flood situation.
The engineers opened Idamalayar. Lover Periyar, Kallarkutty, Bhoothathankettu, Mattupetty and Chengulam all at once. In addition Tamilnadu raised Mullaperiyar spillway, letting water to Idukki. Six dams in the Chalakudy basin also opened simultaneously. Peringalkuthu reservoir, which was full by June 10, remained shut between July 28 and August 8. During this spell, TN opened shutters at Upper Sholayar and Parambikulam. Kerala could not persuade TN to hold this operation.
