sentences:  The dam is 355 feet high and crosses the Malampuzha River, a tributary of Bharathappuzha, Kerala's second longest river.There is a network of two canal systems that serve the dam's reservoir of 42,090 hectares.The dam project was begun in 1949 and completed in 1955. foundation stone for the project was laid on 27 March 1949, by the then Public Works Minister of Madras State, Sri M. Bhaktavatsalam as Palakkad was a part of the Madras Presidency during those times.