Siruvani Dam leakage yet to be plugged even as monsoon nears
COIMBATORE: With the southwest monsoon just days away, concerns are mounting over the delay in initiating critical repair works at the Siruvani Dam - one of the primary sources of drinking water for Coimbatore city.
The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) has been waiting for the Kerala Water Resources and Irrigation Department to finalise cost estimates for essential repairs, based on a recent report by dam safety experts.
To address increasing seepage from the dam, a joint inspection was conducted on January 8 by five teams comprising officials from the Pune-based Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M), CCMC, and the Kerala State Government's Water Resources Department. The teams carried out a detailed assessment of the dam's condition and highlighted urgent structural interventions.
The CWPRS team has since submitted a comprehensive report to CCMC Commissioner M Sivaguru Prabakaran, outlining the extent of the damage and suggesting remedial measures to arrest the leakage and improve overall dam safety.
The Pune team has suggested two methods - grouting and geo membrane for fixing the issues in the dam. Due to water seepage, around 10 MLD of water is being wasted every single day. This quantity can be used to supply water for three days to residential areas in the city. And once the issues are addressed, around 50 to 55 MLD of water can be saved during the peak summer season which would be of great use for the people.
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