Chennai : After damage to Upper Anicut, TN government officials have begun a survey of the Coleroon river at Mukkombu near Tiruchirappalli. A portion of the anicut was washed away on Wednesday.

Government officials told media persons at the site, 350 km from Chennai, on Thursday that they were examining ways to erect a temporary structure to ease the problem immediately.

Opposition PMK and farmers blamed the indiscriminate mining of the river sand for the damage to the dam. This is just an indication of shape of things to come, the farmers said.

On Wednesday night eight shutters out of 45 shutters of the dam were washed away resulting in heavy outflow of water. Some of the piers supporting the shutters also came down. Another shutter was washed away early Thursday morning.

This would not affect water supply for irrigation, officials assured the farmers.

PMK leader and former Union Miniser Anbumani Ramadoss blamed the state government for lack of maintenance and indiscriminate sand mining in the Coleroon river for the weaking of the dam.

The Upper Anaicut, a small dam across Coleroon was built by Sir Arthur Cotton between 1836 and 1838.