Inflow into Mettur dam reduces

Mettur dam water levels near capacity, man arrested for uncle's murder, puffed rice shop fire in Salem.

Mettur dam’s water level on Saturday stood at 119.14 feet against its full capacity of 120 feet. The storage level stood at 92.10 TMC against its full capacity of 93.47 TMC. Inflow into the dam reduced to 1,128 cusecs from Friday’s inflow of 1,992 cusecs. The amount of water discharged from the dam into the River Cauvery for delta irrigation and canal irrigation continued at 12,000 cusecs and 300 cusecs, respectively.

Police arrested a 30-year-old man for allegedly murdering his uncle. According to police, S. Selvaraj, of Puthiragoundampalayam, was an alcoholic and would regularly borrow money from residents to drink. On Friday, he demanded money from his uncle Periasamy, 67, who resided in the same locality. When he refused, a quarrel ensued between them, during which Selvaraj allegedly killed Periasamy and severed his head. He also threatened people who tried to prevent him. Yethapur police, upon receiving information, arrived at the spot and sent the body to Salem Government Hospital for postmortem. The police registered a case, arrested Selvaraj and remanded him in prison on Saturday.

A puffed rice shop at Kamandapatti Pirivu in Salem caught fire, destroying most of its products. Black smoke began emanating early on Saturday at the shop, owned by Murugan, a resident of Mecheri, and spread to the whole shop. On information, Omalur Fire and Rescue Service personnel rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire. But the puffed rice and snack items in the shop were destroyed in the fire. Omalur police are investigating the incident.