ABOUT

Pothundi Dam is an irrigation dam near Pothundi village in the Palakkad district of Kerala state, India. Constructed in the 19th century, it is considered one of the oldest dams in India. It provides irrigation to an area of 5,470 hectares (13,500 acres) in the Palakkad district and drinking water supply to the Neamara, Aylur, Melarcode Panchayat. An unusual feature of the earth dam is the core wall, which is built with a mixture of jaggery and quick lime.A popular festival held on the shores of the reservoir is known as the Nemmara Vallengi Vela Festival. The dam is built in the Pothundy village across the Meenichiladipuzha and Padipuzha rivers, which are tributaries of the Aylampuzha river, about 400 metres (1,300 ft) upstream of the confluence, in the backdrop of the Nelliampathi hills. It drains a catchment area of 31 square kilometres (12 sq mi) at Full Reservoir Level, which is thickly forested with teak wood trees.[1] The dam is in the Chittur taluk, about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Nemmara and 42 kilometres (26 mi) from Palakkad and 17 kilometres (11 mi) from Nelliampathi. The dam, built in the 19th century for irrigation, was developed as a medium irrigation project completed in 1971 at a cost of Rs.23.425 million The dam also provides water supply, and the reservoir has been developed as an important inland fisheries project.