Water from Bhavanisagar dam to be released from Friday

A file picture shows water being released from Bhavanisagar dam for irrigation. Photo"M. Govarthan.

Water from the Bhavanisagar dam in Erode district would be released for irrigation from Friday (August 15).

Announcing this in a statement on Wednesday, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa said the move would benefit 1,03,500 acres in Erode, Tiruppur and Karur districts. This was in response to representations of farmers for the first crop to be raised in wet lands. The water would be released through the Lower Bhavani Project canal, extension canal and the Chennasamudram canal.

This morning, the water level of the dam stood at 76.28 ft (full level: 105 ft) and the storage was 13,795 million cubic feet (capacity: 32,800 mcft). The dam registered an inflow of 1.942 cubic feet per second.