Tue Apr 29 14:39:50 UTC 2025: ## Kerala’s Athirappilly Dam Project Sparks Tribal Outrage and Environmental Concerns
**Thrissur, Kerala, April 29, 2025** – A proposed “integrated tourism-cum-power project” at Athirappilly in Kerala has ignited fierce opposition from tribal communities and environmental activists. The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB)’s plan threatens to submerge 137 hectares of virgin forest, including a rare low-elevation riparian forest, impacting over 300 tribal members from the Pokalappara and Vazhachal hamlets.
Kadar tribal leader Geetha Vazhachal voiced strong concerns, stating that the project would destroy their homes and way of life, echoing past displacements due to dam construction. The project also poses a significant threat to the recently acquired community forest rights of the Vazhachal Kadar community. The tribes plan to resist the project, with a meeting scheduled after May 2nd to strategize their response.
S.P. Ravi of the Chalakudy River Protection Forum criticized the KSEB’s rebranding of the project as a deceptive attempt to bypass environmental concerns that previously halted it. He argues that the project is economically unviable, questioning the KSEB’s claim that the dam will mitigate flooding in the Chalakudy River, given the existing six dams’ failure to do so. The project, he adds, will also destroy the habitat of endemic species, including rare birds and fish.
Furthermore, Ravi highlighted the KSEB’s actions as contradictory to their tourism promotion efforts. The reduction of power generation at the Peringalkuthu plant during summer, which affects the water flow to the Athirappilly Falls, renders the iconic waterfall dry during peak tourist season. The proposed reservoir, he warned, also threatens a vital elephant migration corridor, potentially leading to increased human-wildlife conflict. The opposition underscores significant environmental and social concerns surrounding the Athirappilly dam project.
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