Water storage in Cauvery reservoirs dwindling

Team Udayavani, May 4, 2018, 12:33 PM IST

Mandya: A water crisis can be expected in Karnataka as a report from the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) shows the combined live storage of the four major reservoirs in the Cauvery basin as less than 10 tmcft. This report spells terror for the districts that are dependent on these reservoirs for their drinking water requirements.

The Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) shows a water level of 72.46 ft against the full reservoir level (FRL) of 124.8 ft. The usable quantum of water in the dam was only 3.44 tmcft against the live storage capacity of 45.05 tmcft which indicates that the quantum of usable water available is only 8% of its actual capacity. Even with erratic showers of rain, the flow of water into the KRS has been negligible. The rate of inflow on Thursday was at the rate of 115 cusecs.

The Hemavathi reservoir in Hassan district recorded a live storage of 3.33 tmcft on Thursday against its actual storage of 35.76 tmcft, which is 9% of its actual capacity. Kabini reservoir in H.D.Kote recorded a live storage of 1.82 tmcft while Harangi in Kodagu recorded 1.35 tmcft. The rate of inflow in Kabini was 278 cusecs, 92 cusecs in Harangi and 22 cusecs at Hemavathi.

Cauvery Neeravari Nigam Ltd.(CNNL) and the Irrigation Department say that the current storage in the Cauvery basin reservoirs is enough to meet the drinking water requirements of Bengaluru, Mysuru and other districts dependent on the Cauvery for 15 days.