Responding to a request from the district administration of Thrissur, a diving team from the Southern Naval Command in Kochi carried out repairs to the emergency shutters of the Peechi dam’s sluice gate for five days till Saturday.
“One of the check valves, which control the flow of water to the small hydro project, located on the sides of the spillway shutters, had malfunctioned resulting in a gap of four metres in the gate located inside the dam at a depth of 20 metres. The other gates of the dam, therefore, had to be partially opened to stop the rising water levels in the dam. The naval divers undertook diving to clear a big log and other debris at the site, which prevented lowering of the gate,” said a communication from the Navy.
The extreme pressure of gushing water had made the task arduous and risky. After continuous diving efforts for the past four days, the Naval…