T.N.’s irrigation reservoirs yet to reach 50% capacity

The combined storage of 15 major irrigation reservoirs in Tamil Nadu is not even 50 of their total capacity.

On Monday morning, the storage of the reservoirs was about 92.8 thousand million cubic feet (tmc ft) against the total capacity of about 195 tmc ft.

The main reason for the situation is that the storage (30.2 tmc ft) of the Mettur reservoir is  nearly one-third of its capacity of 93.47 tmc ft. If Mettur  left out, the combined storage of other reservoirs is around 61% of the total capacity. 

Of the other reservoirs, Bhavanisagar had a storage of  approximately 16.3 tmc ft; Parambikulam - 8.9 tmc ft; Sathanur - 6.9 tmc ft and Mullaperiyar - 6.2 tmc ft. In respect of the last reservoir, the water level stood at 136.2 ft against the permitted level of 142 ft.

The reservoirs that were almost full included Sathanur; the downstream dam; Krishnagiri, (1.5 tmc ft) and Perunchani (2.5 tmc ft).

Six reservoirs recorded four-digit inflows with the highest figure being 1,827 cubic feet per second (cusecs), as received at Mettur.  Papanasam in the south registered 1,748 cusecs and Bhavanisagar - 1,329 cusecs. The remaining reservoirs were Mullaperiyar (1,307 cusecs); Vaigai (1,259 cusecs) and Pechiparai (1,078 cusecs).  

As for the Cauvery realisation, the State got 10.66 tmc ft in November, taking the total figure of realisation since June 1 to 68.7 tmc ft. Had the current year been normal, the State should have received about 157 tmc ft. So, the shortfall, as calculated from this angle, was around 88.5 tmc ft.