Telangana reservoirs filled to brim, water released downstream
Continuous inflow of water from the Western Ghats has filled almost every major project on Krishna and Godavari rivers in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
HYDERABAD: Continuous inflow of water from the Western Ghats has filled almost every major project on Krishna and Godavari rivers in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
The Almatti Dam on the Krishna River received a staggering inflow of 1.65 lakh cusecs of water into its reservoir at 6 am on Friday. The water storage had reached a staggering 93.28 TMC. Authorities swiftly opened the gates, releasing 1.75 lakh cusecs downstream.
At the Narayanapur Dam, 1.18 lakh cusecs was released on Friday. Further downstream, the overwhelming flood from above forced the authorities at the Jurala Project to lift the gates, releasing 27,846 cusecs of water.
Adding to the immense flow, Krishna River received 1,125 cusecs from Handri. The Srisailam Project, with 39.2 TMCs of storage at a height of 817.7 feet, was receiving 71,547 cusecs as of 6 am on Friday.
With an influx of 18,239 cusecs, the water storage in Pulichinthala Project surged to an impressive 21.88 TMCS.
The Prakasam Barrage, downstream from the Krishna River's journey, received a breathtaking 1,37,294 cusecs of water on Friday. With rains forecasted to persist in the basin, a similar pattern of flooding is expected to continue on Friday.
Meanwhile, the Godavari River has roared to life, rejuvenated by the bountiful inflows from its expansive watershed. Most of the projects are nearing full capacity level. Among them, the Sriramsagar Project (SRSP), which is a crucial lifeline of Telangana, is on the brink of reaching its gross storage capacity of 90.30 TMC.
On Thursday night, the administrators were forced to open 23 of the 44 flood gates on the SRSP, releasing a staggering 1.54 lakh cubic seconds into the river. The Kaddam project too was releasing around 2.40 lakh cusecs floodwater, leaving only two out of its 18 floodgates unopened due to operational difficulties.
The Nizam Sagar Project too experienced a significant increase in water inflow, recording around 7,200 cusecs on Thursday night. Downstream, the Sripada Yellamapalli project, found itself inundated with over 2 lakh cusecs of water. Downstream, the inflows and outflows stand at 13.57 lakh cusecs at Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage in Dowleswaram near Rajamahendravaram.