Chemban Vellayan Kolumban, the tribal chieftain who was instrumental in Idukki dam’s construction, has got a befitting memorial at Vellapara by the side of the Puliyanmala-Thodupuzha State Highway where his body was buried.
The Oorali tribespeople used to light a lamp at the site in his honour. In the 2012-13 State Budget, ₹70 lakh was allotted for a memorial for the chieftain there. It has materialised after seven years. Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran inaugurated the facility through a videoconference on Saturday.
Photos, booklets
The tomb of Kolumban is 9.5 feet long and 3.5 feet high, next to which is set the 5.54-foot-tall statue. Kunnuvila Murali, who had made a statue of Kolumban near the Idukki arch dam when the dam was commissioned in 1975, sculpted a bronze statue this time for the memorial. The facility has a stall with photographs of the dam construction period, booklets depicting the history of Idukki, and spices from the district. A 25-foot-tall tree house where Kolumban is believed to have stayed is also part of the memorial.
Story of the dam
It was Kolumban who guided Malankara estate superintendent W.J. John and his friend A.C. Thomas on a hunting trip in 1922. While they sat near a waterfall, Kolumban told them stories of the two hills Kuravan and Kurathi between which the Periyar flowed. The idea of constructing a dam was conceived there. A report in this regard was submitted to the erstwhile Travancore government in 1932.
A new feasibility study report was submitted to the Central Water Commission in 1956. In 1964, the Central Planning Commission cleared the construction of Idukki dam.
An official of the District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) said the entry to the memorial is free.
