The Sothuparai Dam is a dam across the
Varaha River
The Varaha River (or Varahanadhi) is a small river that flows through the town of Periyakulam in Theni district of the state of Tamil Nadu in India. It joins the Vaigai River near Marugalpatti. The Sothuparai Dam spans the river near Periyakulam. ...
in the Indian state of
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
. It is located 12 km from the town of
Periyakulam
Periyakulam () is a major town and a municipality in Theni district, in the Madurai Region, South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. As of 2011, the town had a population of 42,976. Periyakulam is the northern gateway of the district.
Etymology
...
in
Theni district.
Sothupari dam is one among the highest dams in Tamil Nadu. It is located at the backside of Periyakulam city. It is constructed across the river Varaganadhi (A tributary of River Vaigai) and located 12 km from Periyakulam. The height of the dam is 57 m. Its length is 345 m and the total catchment area is 357 Acre. The agricultural lands belonging to Thenkarai (817 Acre) and Thamaraikulam village (223 Acre) are benefitted by this Dam.
History
In 1920, a proposal for constructing a dam with reservoir of 100 million cubic feet water storing capacity across the River Varaganadhi at an estimated cost of Rs. 791 lakhs was passed. Technical Sanction for a sum of Rs. 870.1 lakhs was granted to the Chief Engineer, PWD. The dam construction works were started on 20.07.1982 but got delayed due to the delay in acquisition of 14.55 hectare land from the Forest Department. The works were resumed since 1985. It was found that there were no hard rocks beneath the proposed site and so the geological department was contacted to offer clearance in this regard. The works were restarted on 1997 November and completed by M/s ECCI company on 2001. Dr. M. Karunanidhi, the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu paid a visit to the dam site and pace of work accelerated. The dam reached its maximum capacity and overflowed for the first time on 15.11.2001. The dam was opened in a simple function by Thiru. R. Paranthaman, Chief Engineer, PWD presided over by Thiru. Athul Anand, District Collector, Theni.
[Pages: 354 and 355, Namma Ooru, a Book on the History of Periyakulam- by Thiru.S.Shah Jahan]
See also
*
Manjalar Dam
References
{{Reflist
Varaha River
Dams in Tamil Nadu
Dams completed in 2001
2001 establishments in Tamil Nadu