After 16 years, the Kodaikanal lake has reached its near-full capacity of 36 feet. Recent rain in Palani Hills has helped lift the level of the water body, after multiple years of drought left the hill station parched for several years, reports ToI.
According to the reports, people residing on the banks were warned. Officials decided ot release the water when the lake was just one and a half feet from reaching full capacity. Kodaikanal municipal officials feared the water would spill on to the roads, if it was not released.
“We have seen the lake overflow in the past, but this time it holds more water due to the construction of concrete sluice in 2015,“ said municipal commissioner K Saravanan to ToI.
But even as this man made lake fills up to the brim, the two dams that provide drinking water to the residents are nowhere near full capacity. The water level in the Earth dam was reportedly at 13.2 feet of its total capacity of 22 feet, whereas hte level fo the Masonry dam was 20.6 out of its capacity of 22 feet.
The Kodaikanal lake is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the state and is reportedly spread over close to 60 acres. Heavy downpour over the last one week had caused land slides at several places on the Palani-Kodaikanal road, as per reports.