{{Short description|Dam in Tamil Nadu, India}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}} {{Use Indian English|date=December 2018}} {{Infobox dam | name = Kallanai Dam | image = Grand Anicut, Kallanai (11876067114).jpg | construction_began = c.150 BC | location = Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, India | image_caption = Kallanai Dam with its floodgates open | purpose = Irrigation | status = Operational | builder = ''Karikala cholan'' of Chola dynasty | dam_type = Barrage | dam_crosses = River | dam_height_foundation = {{convert|5.4|m|ft}} | dam_length = {{convert|329|m|ft}} | dam_width_base = {{convert|20|m|ft}} | operator = Government of Tamil Nadu }}
'''Kallanai''' (literally “stone dam”, also known as the '''Grand Anicut''') is an ancient dam built by Karikala of Chola dynasty in 150 CE. It was built (in running water) across the Kaveri river flowing from Tiruchirapalli District to Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, India. The dam is located in Thanjavur district,<ref name="tngis.tnega.org">{{Cite web | title=TNGIS - Map Editor | url=https://tngis.tnega.org/generic_viewer/ | access-date=2025-11-15 | website=tngis.tnega.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Flowing waters for fertile fields|url=http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/kids/article2408778.ece|newspaper=The Hindu|date=29 August 2011|location=India}}</ref><ref name="kallanai_googlebook">{{cite book|last=Singh|first=Vijay P.|author2=Ram Narayan Yadava|title=Water Resources System Operation: Proceedings of the International Conference on Water and Environment|publisher=Allied Publishers|year=2003|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bge-0XX6ip8C&dq=kallanai&pg=PA508|isbn=81-7764-548-X|page=508}}</ref> 15 km from Tiruchirapalli and 45 km from Thanjavur.<ref name="Saqaf" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/incredible-india-2000-year-old-functional-dam-india-today-175057-2013-08-26|title=Incredible India! A 2,000-year-old functional dam|date=August 26, 2013 |magazine=India Today|language=en|access-date=2019-02-15}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/trichy/Karikalan-cholan-memorial-inaugurated/articleshow/30300318.cms|title=Karikalan cholan memorial inaugurated - Times of India|website=The Times of India|date=13 February 2014 |access-date=2019-02-15}}</ref> It is the fourth oldest water-diversion or water-regulator structure in the world and the oldest in India that is still in use.<ref name="Hill2008">{{cite book|author=Christopher V. Hill|title=South Asia: An Environmental History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f9D4Ob1YcJgC&pg=PA33|year=2008|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-85109-925-2|pages=33–}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Kallanai Dam {{!}}{{!}} Thanjavur Tourism |url=http://www.thanjavurtourism.com/kallanai-dam.html |website=www.thanjavurtourism.com |access-date=2 November 2018 |archive-date=9 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009222808/http://www.thanjavurtourism.com/kallanai-dam.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==History== The dam was originally built by King Karikalan of the Chola Dynasty in {{Circa|100 |150 CE}}. It is located on the river in Thanjavur district,<ref name="tngis.tnega.org"/> exactly 14 km from the city of Tiruchirappalli and 45 km from the city of Thanjavur. The idea behind the construction of the dam was to divert the river to the delta districts thereby boosting irrigation.<ref name="Saqaf">{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/a-rock-solid-dam-that-has-survived-1800-years/article4494161.ece|title=A rock solid dam that has survived 2000 years|author=Syed Muthahar Saqaf|date=10 March 2013|newspaper=The Hindu|access-date=13 November 2013}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> This dam was re-modeled by the British during the 19th century. In 1804, Captain Caldwell, a military engineer, was appointed by the British to make a study on the Kaveri river and promote irrigation for the delta region.{{Sfn|Skempton|2002|p=114}} He found that a large amount of water passed onto the Kollidam leaving behind a small volume for irrigation purposes.{{Sfn|Skempton|2002|p=114}} Caldwell initially proposed a solution by raising the dam and hence raised the dam stones to a height of {{convert|69|cm|in}}, thus increasing the capacity of the dam.<ref name=Saqaf /> Following this, Major Sim proposed the idea of undersluices across the river with outlets leading to the Kollidam River (Coleroon) thus preventing formation of silt.<ref name=Saqaf /> The Lower Anaicut built by Sir Arthur Cotton in the 19th century across Coleroon, the major tributary of Cauvery is said to be a replicated structure of Kallanai.<ref name=Saqaf />
==Geography== The Kaveri river splits into two at a point {{Convert|20|mi|km}} west of Kallanai. The two rivers form the island of Srirangam before joining at Kallanai. The northern channel is called the Kollidam (Coleroon); the other retains the name Kaveri, and empties into the Bay of Bengal at Poompuhar. On the seaward face of its delta are the seaports of Nagapattinam and Karaikal.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://arno.unimaas.nl/show.cgi?fid=14861 |title=Dikes and Dams, Thick with Politics |author=Wiebe E. Bijker |date=19 September 2006 |publisher=Maastricht University |access-date=7 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425145013/http://arno.unimaas.nl/show.cgi?fid=14861 |archive-date=25 April 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Description== The purpose of the Kallanai was to divert the waters of the Kaveri across the fertile delta region for irrigation via canals and to its northern delta branch Kollidam/Coleroon. Downstream of the barrage, the river Kaveri splits into four streams known as Kollidam Aru, Kaveri, Vennaru and Puthu Aru. However, the flood waters can be allowed, by opening the barrage/anaicut gates, to pass through the other three delta branches also to join the sea.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://india-wris.nrsc.gov.in/wrpinfo/index.php?title=Grand_Anicut_A00677 |title=Grand Anicut A00677 |publisher=WRIS, India |access-date=7 November 2016 |archive-date=10 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180810070947/http://india-wris.nrsc.gov.in/wrpinfo/index.php?title=Grand_Anicut_A00677 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It is constructed from unhewn stone spanning the Kaveri and is {{convert|329|m|abbr=on}} long, {{convert|20|m|abbr=on}} wide and {{convert|5.4|m|abbr=on}} high.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iimtrichy.ac.in/home/students/places_to_visit |title=Places to visit |publisher=IIM-Trichy, India |access-date=7 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111219124955/http://www.iimtrichy.ac.in/home/students/places_to_visit/ |archive-date=19 December 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The dam is still in excellent condition, and supplied a model to later engineers, including Sir Arthur Cotton's 19th-century dam across the Kollidam, the major distributary of the Kaveri.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lawlibrary.unm.edu/nrj/48/3/03_agoramoorthy_indian.pdf |title=The Check-Dam Route to Mitigate India's Water Shortages |author1=Govindasamy Agoramoorthy |author2=Sunitha chaudhary |author3=Minna J. HSU |publisher=Law library — University of New Mexico |access-date=7 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130720143611/http://lawlibrary.unm.edu/nrj/48/3/03_agoramoorthy_indian.pdf |archive-date=20 July 2013 }}</ref> The area irrigated by the ancient irrigation network is about {{convert|69000|acre|abbr=on|lk=out}}. By the early 20th century, the irrigated area had been increased to about one million acres (400,000 ha).<ref>{{cite news|title=Fit case for World Heritage status|url=http://www.hindu.com/2007/09/10/stories/2007091058970400.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070914051504/http://www.hindu.com/2007/09/10/stories/2007091058970400.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 September 2007|date=10 September 2007|newspaper=The Hindu|location=Trichy, India}}</ref>
The delta farmers of Tamil Nadu have demanded the Tamil Nadu government to honor Karikala Cholan, who built this dam.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CM's word on Karikalan memorial cheers farmers in Cauvery Delta |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2013/jan/17/cms-word-on-karikalan-memorial-cheers-farmers-in-cauvery-delta-443732.html |access-date=2023-07-26 |website=The New Indian Express}}</ref>
==Gallery== <gallery> File:Kallanai Name Inscription.jpg|Plaque bearing the dam's name File:Kallanai.jpg|Engineering wonder of Karikalan's period File:Fishing Kallanai.jpg|Fishing in the sluices, Kallanai dam, Thanjavur File:Kallanai 2.jpg|Another view, Kallanai dam File:Kallanai 3.jpg|Kallanai dam File:Water flowing out of grand anaicut.webm|Water being discharged from Kallanai in August 2018 witnessing beauty of kallanai in river Kauvery </gallery>
==See also== * Tamil language * Tamil literature * Sangam period
==References== {{reflist}}
==Bibliography== {{Commons category|Grand Anicut}} {{refbegin}} *{{cite book|last=Skempton|first=A. W.|title=A Biographical Dictionary of Civil Engineers in Great Britain and Ireland: 1500-1830|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jeOMfpYMOtYC|year=2002|publisher=Thomas Telford|isbn=978-0-7277-2939-2}} *{{cite book|author=Rita|title=Inventive Indians|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QKssaSLqBBsC|year=2011|publisher=Westland|isbn=978-93-80658-03-2}}{{Dead link|date=September 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} {{refend}}
==Further reading== {{refbegin}} *{{cite book|last1=Rahman|first1=Abdur|author2=Project of History of Indian Science, Philosophy, and Culture|title=History of Indian Science, Technology and Culture: Ad 1000-1800|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4bnaAAAAMAAJ|year=1999|publisher=Oxford University Press India|isbn=978-0-19-564652-8}} {{refend}}
{{Kaveri River}}
Category:Buildings and structures completed in the 1st century Category:Dams in Tamil Nadu Category:Dams on the Kaveri River Category:Buildings and structures in Tiruchirappalli Category:Multiple-arch dams Category:Chola architecture Category:Tourist attractions in Tiruchirappalli Category:Water Heritage Sites in India