Photo: Manukrishnan80 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Western Ghats · Dam

Perunchani Dam

பெருஞ்சாணி அணை

A reservoir held between two forested hillocks

Move across the photo, or drag it on a phone, to look around.

You arrive

You come up to Perunchani where the land narrows between two hillocks of the Western Ghats, and the Paralayar River has been stopped between them. The reservoir lies back among the hills, thickly forested on its far shores. Stepping out, you can tell this is a working structure rather than a resort. It is quiet here. Trees grow right down to the waterline, and the country beyond is home to wild animals.

Perunchani Dam · Photo: Manukrishnan80 · CC BY-SA 4.0

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Between the hillocks

You walk to a point where you can see how the dam uses the land. Two hillocks close the valley and the wall fills the gap. It was built in December 1952 to store flood water, and it became operational in September 1953. Follow the line of the water back to the forest and notice how quickly the human part ends and the hills begin.

Perunchani Dam · Photo: Manukrishnan80 · CC BY-SA 4.0

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Looking into the forest

You stand looking across the reservoir at the wooded slopes. Tigers, elephants and deer are recorded in the forests around it, and a tribal community lives in this landscape. You are unlikely to see any of the animals from here, but knowing they are there changes how the far bank looks. Stay in the public area and leave the forest edge alone.

Being here

You see

Dark forested hills reflected in still water.

You hear

Near silence, with birds across the water.

You smell

Damp forest and fresh water.

You feel

Mild hill air, and quiet.

Look around

The story

Perunchani Dam was constructed in December 1952 as an extension of the Kodayar Irrigation System, which was short of water. It stores flood water of the Paralayar River, about 1 km upstream of Puthen Dam, and became operational on 2 September 1953. The dam stands between two hillocks of the Western Ghats, with a catchment of 158.4 square kilometres. The reservoir is surrounded by thick forest inhabited by wild animals such as tigers, elephants and deer, and a tribal community lives in the area.

Sources: Wikipedia: Perunchani Dam

Close by

Forest

Keeriparai and Kanniyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary

The southern end of the Western Ghats, and tiger habitat

Forest

Kalikesam

A forest river and Kali temple inside the sanctuary

Heritage

Mathur Aqueduct

A canal carried across a valley on concrete pillars

Waterfall

Ulakkai Aruvi

A twin-tiered forest waterfall on the Pazhayar

View from Alancholai, Chittar Dam · Photo: Athulvis · CC BY-SA 4.0

Continue the journey