The Athirappilly hydel project has loomed like the sword of Damocles over the lives of more than 100 tribal families in the Pokalappara and Vazhachal hamlets.
The Kerala State Electricity Board’s new proposal for an ‘integrated tourism-cum-power project’ has evoked concern among the over 300 members of the tribal communities, who call these forests home.
“Our hamlets and our way of life will vanish along with the 137 hectares of virgin forest,” says Geetha Vazhachal, chief of the Kadar community in Vazhachal. “We’ve already been uprooted multiple times during the construction of other dams in this region — how much more are we expected to lose?”
The proposed Athirappilly project poses the greatest threat to the tribal settlements of Pokalappara and Vazhachal. The families of Kadar tribes in the Vazhachal area got community forest rights a few years back.
“We have informed all tribal hamlets about the new developments. We will convene a meeting after May 2 to chalk out a plan to resist the move,” says Ms. Geetha.
The KSEB’s rebranding of the Athirappilly hydel project as an ‘integrated tourism-cum-power project’ is nothing more than a smokescreen, says S.P. Ravi of the Chalakudy River Protection Forum. “It’s the same destructive plan dressed in misleading language to push it through,” he says.
“The environmental concerns that halted this project before remain the same. This is not an economically viable project by any measure. The KSEB doesn’t even utilise the full capacity of the existing dams, yet they’re planning to build another,” says Mr. Ravi.
“How can they claim this new dam will control flooding in the Chalakudy river? There are already six dams on the river—and none have managed to prevent floods. Now they want us to believe a smaller dam will control the floods where the others failed? It’s illogical.”
The proposed dam will submerge 137 ha of virgin forest, including the rare low elevation riparian forest. The project will sound death-knell to the endemic species in the area, including rare birds, fishes, with their habitat loss, Mr. Ravi added.
The same KSEB that talks about promoting tourism at Athirappilly falls is actively undermining its natural beauty, says Mr. Ravi.
“They cut down power generation at the Peringalkuthu plant—even when there’s water in the reservoir—just as summer hits,” he says. Since the water released from Peringalkuthu flows into the Chalakudy river and feeds the falls, this reduction leaves the iconic cascade dry during peak tourist season.
The proposed reservoir in the Vazhachal area threatens a critical wildlife corridor used by elephants migrating between the Parambikulam, Edamalayar, and Pooyamkutty forests. Disrupting this route will trigger human-wildlife conflicts and irreversible ecological damage, he says.
Published – April 29, 2025 08:09 pm IST
