Mettur
Encyclopedia
Mettur is an industrial Town municipality
in Salem district
in the state
of Tamil Nadu
, India
. It is best known for the Mettur Dam
.
However in recent years it has been associated with rampant industrial polluting, with the Chennai
-based Community Environmental Monitoring (CEM) arguing in their report of November 2007 for its designation as a "Critically Polluted Area". This argument centred around an air sample which found levels of 1,2-Dicholoroethane, a known carcinogen, at 32,432 times the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Screening Levels. Although the Central Pollution Board is yet to respond to this argument, the findings of The Indian People's Tribunal(IPT) in 2005 and the chemical tests performed by a USEPA-approved laboratory in Oregon, USA make this one of the most pressing environmental issues in South India.
.
Mettur is located at border of the Erode
, Salem
and Dharmapuri districts and equidistant from the district headquarters and about one and half hours by road from these district headquarters.
Palamalai (malai means hill in local lingo) is an offshoot of the Eastern Ghats
geographically contiguous with the BR hills range as they reach out to merge with the Western Ghats
at Nilgiris
.
The town has a thermal power station (840 MW) . One more thermal power station is coming up near the existing one,
.
and locals such as West Gonur Farmers' Association or SpeakOut Salem! the local authorities have failed to bring the problems under control.
These high levels are made even more worrying in the case of sample sites 8 and 9, which are taken from 350 and 500 ft borewells respective.
Mettur can be divided into upper and lower Mettur based on whether the part of the town lies upstream or downstream of the river.
The town houses the Stanley reservoir
, which is a standing example of British stone masonry and the dam
1700 metres in length. The reservoir capacity touches 120 feet, when full and could go few feet beyond its full capacity during surplus seasons.
The town is hemmed to a narrow strip of less than a kilometre (the dam's length) in width by the cauvery let out by the Dam on the east and Eli karadu (Mouse hill) on the west which forms an interesting pattern of three similar peaks with identical longer shoulders to their left increasing in height from the Dam's crest level about a 1000 ft from sea level in the north to about 4000 ft peak in the Pallamalai.
Pannavadi parisal thurai near Kolathur is located 12 km far from Mettur. There is a boat transportation in between the Kolathur and Nerupur of dharmapuri district. The boat transportation also available from koattaiyur it is 20 km far from mettur. When the water level decreases in Mettur dam, we can see an Old Nandhi statue, an old church, a palace (Koattai) of Tippu Sultan which was sunk inside the water. It is nearer to Koattaiyur and Pannavadi. It is possible to travel by fisherman's boat from any of the place mentioned.
This was the place where Virappan, notorious for his exploits for the extinction of Sandalwood and Tuskers in the whole forest regions straddling about 2000 km² raging from Anaimalai to Hogenakkal spread across the three states Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka once gave a slip to the law enforcers while they were chasing him from Salem Government Hospital where he had ended a Deputy superintendent of police's life after the latter was admitted with serous injuries from a land mine planted by Veerapan.
Villagers in Mettur celebrate the Mariamman festival during the summer vacation time (Month of may) and lasts for one whole week.
AADI 18 is the famous festival for cauvery delta people.
Mecheri Kaliamman kovil is famous for "Amavasai". Hundreds of thousands of people started coming since 1am from near villages.
, Mettur had a population of 53,790. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Mettur has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 64.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 66%. In Mettur, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.
SCHOOLS: 'MALCO VIDYALAYA MATRICULATION HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL,'NIRMALA HR. SEC. SCHOOL, , St. Mary's Matric Hr Sec School, M.A.M.,Valluvar Vasuki Higher Secondary And Matric School, G.V, Ramesh Vidhyashram, Vaidheeswara,JEMS, Govt. HSS, Mettur,St. Mary's for girls,etc.
TECHNICAL INSTITUTES: MIT Polytechnic College, Kaveri Polytechnic, Kaveri Engineering College,Govt. Arts and Science College and ITI Mettur.
Engineering students would find that Mettur has a lot to offer in providing them an insight in Manufacturing through industrial tour's of the many industries and Power plants and Barrages to look up to.
MIT(Mettur Institute of Technology) Polytechnic College has emerged to be one of the finest polytechnic colleges in salem district. Bright future awaits for those who get into MIT Polytechnic college...
RAJAMMA HOSPITAL at raman nagar run by dr.k.selvamani dgo dr saravanakumar da withan operation theatre complete clinical lab and back up support from superspeciality drs
Mettur being close to the transportation hubs of Erode
and Salem is well connected to both these cities as well as to Dharmapuri. Bus services operate from Erode & Salem at the most frequency, with bus services once in every 5 minutes.
Rail '
It has got a railway station from where it is connected to salem .There is a daily express train to chennai from Mettur Dam and in the return direction too.
Air
Nearest airport is Salem Airport
which has daily flights to Chennai.
2. Good Quality Eateries.
3. Places for recreation.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in Salem district
Salem District
Salem District is a district of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The city of Salem is the district headquarters. Other major towns in the district are Mettur, Omalur and Attur...
in the state
States and territories of India
India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...
of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It is best known for the Mettur Dam
Mettur Dam
The Mettur Dam is a large dam in India built in 1934.It was constructed in a gorge, where the Kaveri River enters the plains. The dam is one of the oldest in India . It provides irrigation facilities to a part of Salem, the length of Erode, Namakkal, Karur, Tiruchirappali and Thanjavur district for...
.
However in recent years it has been associated with rampant industrial polluting, with the Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
-based Community Environmental Monitoring (CEM) arguing in their report of November 2007 for its designation as a "Critically Polluted Area". This argument centred around an air sample which found levels of 1,2-Dicholoroethane, a known carcinogen, at 32,432 times the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Screening Levels. Although the Central Pollution Board is yet to respond to this argument, the findings of The Indian People's Tribunal(IPT) in 2005 and the chemical tests performed by a USEPA-approved laboratory in Oregon, USA make this one of the most pressing environmental issues in South India.
Mettur-aluminium city of Tamilnadu
Mettur, meaning 'town with crests and troughs', obtained its name owing to the undulating rocky nature of the land that makes the town an ideal place for the DAM on Cauvery river the life line of north and central Tamil Nadu. Stanley ReservoirStanley Reservoir
Stanley Reservoir is one of largest fishing reservoirs in South India . Its source of water is the River Kaveri , and the water is retained by the Mettur Dam, Tamil Nadu. Its total capacity is more than 90,000,000,000 cubic feet ....
.
Mettur is located at border of the Erode
Erode District
Erode District is a western district of the state of Tamil Nadu, India, with Erode as its headquarters. Until the year 1996, Erode district was called as Periyar District....
, Salem
Salem District
Salem District is a district of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The city of Salem is the district headquarters. Other major towns in the district are Mettur, Omalur and Attur...
and Dharmapuri districts and equidistant from the district headquarters and about one and half hours by road from these district headquarters.
Palamalai (malai means hill in local lingo) is an offshoot of the Eastern Ghats
Eastern Ghats
The Eastern Ghats or Eastern Ghauts are a discontinuous range of mountains along India's eastern coast. The Eastern Ghats run from West Bengal state in the north, through Orissa and Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu in the south passing some parts of Karnataka. They are eroded and cut through by the...
geographically contiguous with the BR hills range as they reach out to merge with the Western Ghats
Western Ghats
The Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan...
at Nilgiris
Nilgiris (mountains)
The Nilgiri , often referred to as the Nilgiri Hills, are a range of mountains with at least 24 peaks above , in the westernmost part of Tamil Nadu state at the junction of Karnataka and Kerala states in Southern India...
.
Economy
Mettur has a number of industries; an important one is Mettur Chemicals (now known as Chemplast) which has four large plants manufacturing chemicals, soaps and industrial gases, and one of the worst polluters of the neighbourhood, MALCO (Madras Aluminium Company). MALCO runs a matriculation and higher secondary school. SISCOL (Southern Iron and Steel Company Limited, now a part of Jindal groups(JSW Steel)) is a new addition to the region though it is located a little off Mettur. SISCOL is located at Pottaneri, 15 km from Mettur and 32 km from Salem the district headquarters. SAIL's Salem Steel plant is nearby.High grade granite is quarried in the Eli Karadu Hills.The town has a thermal power station (840 MW) . One more thermal power station is coming up near the existing one,
.
Industrial pollution
Mettur's industrial development has taken a heavy toll on many parts of its farming and fishing communities. However despite protest from both international groups such as GreenpeaceGreenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
and locals such as West Gonur Farmers' Association or SpeakOut Salem! the local authorities have failed to bring the problems under control.
Recent chemical analysis
Recent tests undertaken by Dr Ruth Stringer and Dr Mark Chernaik of ELAW-US (an Oregon-based environmental laboratory) revealed high levels of contamination. From nine samples taken from aroung the plants run by Chemplast and MALCO, the following 17 chemicals were found to be at levels significantly above USEPA 'safe' levels:| Name | Sample Site | Value | No of times above standard | Carcinogen? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chloroform Chloroform Chloroform is an organic compound with formula CHCl3. It is one of the four chloromethanes. The colorless, sweet-smelling, dense liquid is a trihalomethane, and is considered somewhat hazardous... ug/L |
9 | 10,100 | 1771 | NO |
| Vinyl Chloride Vinyl chloride Vinyl chloride is the organochloride with the formula H2C:CHCl. It is also called vinyl chloride monomer, VCM or chloroethene. This colorless compound is an important industrial chemical chiefly used to produce the polymer polyvinyl chloride . At ambient pressure and temperature, vinyl chloride... ug/L |
7 | 164 | 546 | YES |
| Tetrachloroethane Tetrachloroethane Tetrachloroethane may refer to either of two isomeric chemical compounds:* 1,1,1,2-Tetrachloroethane * 1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane -See also:* Tetrachloroethene* Trichloroethane *Tetrafluoroethane*Tetrabromoethane... ug/L |
9 | 55.60 | 327 | YES |
| Bis(2-chloroethyl) ether ug/L | 7 | 136 | 257 | YES |
| Methylene Chloride ug/L | 9 | 1,140 | 248 | YES |
| Hexachlorobenzene Hexachlorobenzene Hexachlorobenzene, or perchlorobenzene, is a chlorocarbon with the molecular formula C6Cl6. It is a fungicide formerly used as a seed treatment, especially on wheat to control the fungal disease bunt... ug/kg |
4 | 819 | 215 | YES |
| Mercury Mercury (element) Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum... mg/kg |
4 | 34.90 | 190 | NO |
| 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene is an organic compound used as a solvent, and is one of the best known solvents used to dissolve fullerenes and pentacene. It is a benzene derivative with three chlorine atoms substitutents, in the 1, 2 and 4 positions of the benzene ring.-See... ug/kg |
6 | 1290 | 161 | NO |
| 1,2-Dichloroethane 1,2-Dichloroethane The chemical compound 1,2-dichloroethane, commonly known by its old name of ethylene dichloride , is a chlorinated hydrocarbon, mainly used to produce vinyl chloride monomer , the major precursor for PVC production. It is a colourless liquid with a chloroform-like odour... ug/L |
7 | 1260 | 82 | YES |
| 1,4-Dichlorobenzene 1,4-Dichlorobenzene 1,4-Dichlorobenzene is an organic compound with the formula C6H4Cl2. This colorless solid has a strong odor. It consists of two chlorine atoms substituted at opposing sites on a benzene ring. p-DCB is used a pesticide and a deodorant, most familiarly in mothballs in which it is a replacement for... ug/kg |
6 | 2080 | 67 | YES |
| 1,2-Dichlorobenzene 1,2-Dichlorobenzene 1,2-Dichlorobenzene, or orthodichlorobenzene , is an organic compound with the formula C6H4Cl2. This colourless liquid is poorly soluble in water but miscible with most organic solvents... ug/L |
7 | 2460 | 65 | NO |
| 1,1,2-Trichloroethane 1,1,2-Trichloroethane 1,1,2-Trichloroethane, or 1,1,2-TCA, is an organochloride solvent with the molecular formula C2H3Cl3. It is a colourless, sweet-smelling liquid that does not dissolve in water, but is soluble in most organic solvents... ug/L |
9 | 33.60 | 57 | YES |
| Trichloroethane Trichloroethane Trichloroethane can refer to either of two isomeric chemical compounds:* 1,1,1-Trichloroethane * 1,1,2-Trichloroethane... ug/L |
9 | 22.20 | 38 | NO |
| Bis(2-Ethylhexyl)Phthalate ug/kg | 6 | 5020 | 10 | YES |
| Hexachlorobutadiene Hexachlorobutadiene Hexachlorobutadiene, Cl2C=CC=CCl2, is a colorless liquid at room temperature that has an odor similar to that of turpentine. It is a chlorinated aliphatic diene with niche applications but is most commonly used as a solvent for other chlorine-containing compounds.-Synthesis:Hexachlorobutadiene, or... ug/kg |
4 | 164 | 4.2 | YES |
| Benzene Benzene Benzene is an organic chemical compound. It is composed of 6 carbon atoms in a ring, with 1 hydrogen atom attached to each carbon atom, with the molecular formula C6H6.... ug/L |
8 | 7.76 | 3.5 | YES |
| Chlorobenzene Chlorobenzene Chlorobenzene is an aromatic organic compound with the chemical formula C6H5Cl. This colorless, flammable liquid is a common solvent and a widely used intermediate in the manufacture of other chemicals.-Uses:... ug/kg |
6 | 949 | 1.15 | NO |
These high levels are made even more worrying in the case of sample sites 8 and 9, which are taken from 350 and 500 ft borewells respective.
Geography
The town houses the Stanley reservoir
Stanley Reservoir
Stanley Reservoir is one of largest fishing reservoirs in South India . Its source of water is the River Kaveri , and the water is retained by the Mettur Dam, Tamil Nadu. Its total capacity is more than 90,000,000,000 cubic feet ....
, which is a standing example of British stone masonry and the dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
1700 metres in length. The reservoir capacity touches 120 feet, when full and could go few feet beyond its full capacity during surplus seasons.
The town is hemmed to a narrow strip of less than a kilometre (the dam's length) in width by the cauvery let out by the Dam on the east and Eli karadu (Mouse hill) on the west which forms an interesting pattern of three similar peaks with identical longer shoulders to their left increasing in height from the Dam's crest level about a 1000 ft from sea level in the north to about 4000 ft peak in the Pallamalai.
Local legend
Neringipettai is about 4 km from the heart of Mettur at the foot of palamalai, the hills almost reachout to the river with just the State Highway from Mettur to Erode between the river and the hills.Pannavadi parisal thurai near Kolathur is located 12 km far from Mettur. There is a boat transportation in between the Kolathur and Nerupur of dharmapuri district. The boat transportation also available from koattaiyur it is 20 km far from mettur. When the water level decreases in Mettur dam, we can see an Old Nandhi statue, an old church, a palace (Koattai) of Tippu Sultan which was sunk inside the water. It is nearer to Koattaiyur and Pannavadi. It is possible to travel by fisherman's boat from any of the place mentioned.
This was the place where Virappan, notorious for his exploits for the extinction of Sandalwood and Tuskers in the whole forest regions straddling about 2000 km² raging from Anaimalai to Hogenakkal spread across the three states Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka once gave a slip to the law enforcers while they were chasing him from Salem Government Hospital where he had ended a Deputy superintendent of police's life after the latter was admitted with serous injuries from a land mine planted by Veerapan.
Festivals/famous pilgrimage centers
Thanga Malai Murugan temple within the town is a local attraction during festivals.Villagers in Mettur celebrate the Mariamman festival during the summer vacation time (Month of may) and lasts for one whole week.
AADI 18 is the famous festival for cauvery delta people.
Mecheri Kaliamman kovil is famous for "Amavasai". Hundreds of thousands of people started coming since 1am from near villages.
Demographics
India censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, Mettur had a population of 53,790. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Mettur has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 64.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 66%. In Mettur, 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Education
Mettur has several good schools and institutes offering good quality education:-SCHOOLS: 'MALCO VIDYALAYA MATRICULATION HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL,'NIRMALA HR. SEC. SCHOOL, , St. Mary's Matric Hr Sec School, M.A.M.,Valluvar Vasuki Higher Secondary And Matric School, G.V, Ramesh Vidhyashram, Vaidheeswara,JEMS, Govt. HSS, Mettur,St. Mary's for girls,etc.
TECHNICAL INSTITUTES: MIT Polytechnic College, Kaveri Polytechnic, Kaveri Engineering College,Govt. Arts and Science College and ITI Mettur.
Engineering students would find that Mettur has a lot to offer in providing them an insight in Manufacturing through industrial tour's of the many industries and Power plants and Barrages to look up to.
MIT(Mettur Institute of Technology) Polytechnic College has emerged to be one of the finest polytechnic colleges in salem district. Bright future awaits for those who get into MIT Polytechnic college...
Hospitals
Mettur has good child clinics : TARUN CLINIC (Child specialist clinic located at Raman nagar).RAJAMMA HOSPITAL at raman nagar run by dr.k.selvamani dgo dr saravanakumar da withan operation theatre complete clinical lab and back up support from superspeciality drs
Transport
Road 'Mettur being close to the transportation hubs of Erode
Erode
Erode is a city, a municipal corporation and the headquarters of Erode district in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu.It is situated at the center of the South Indian Peninsula, about southwest from the state capital Chennai and on the banks of the rivers Cauvery and Bhavani, between 11° 19.5"...
and Salem is well connected to both these cities as well as to Dharmapuri. Bus services operate from Erode & Salem at the most frequency, with bus services once in every 5 minutes.
Rail '
It has got a railway station from where it is connected to salem .There is a daily express train to chennai from Mettur Dam and in the return direction too.
Air
Nearest airport is Salem Airport
Salem Airport (India)
Salem Airport is located in Kamalapuram, Salem, India. This airport serves Salem city and the districts of Salem, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri. Salem Airport is being connected only by from Chennai....
which has daily flights to Chennai.
Problems
1. Pollution - where the concentration of SPM is higher than what is warranted for a healthy living.2. Good Quality Eateries.
3. Places for recreation.