Mysore/Mysuru: There is only 6.5 tmcft (thousand million cubic feet) of water at Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) Dam in Srirangapatna Taluk of Mandya District and Kabini Dam in H.D. Kote Taluk of Mysuru District. Both these reservoirs take care of the drinking water needs of the residents of Mysuru, Mandya and Bengaluru.
The low storage levels and lack of rains due to a delayed onset of South West Monsoon is causing concern among the people who are staring at a potential drinking water scarcity. The photographs of KRS Dam taken a couple of days back paint a grim picture with depleted water level. While KRS Dam has a present water level of 3.5 tmcft, the level at Kabini stands at 3 tmcft.
The maximum level of KRS Dam is 124.80 ft and today’s level stands at 82.32 ft against last year’s 105.55 ft. There is an inflow of 570 cusecs unlike last year when it was 1,425 cusecs. The outflow this year is 3,233 cusecs as against 1,143 cusecs last year.
According to engineers, Reservoir will reach dead storage level (water becomes unusable) if it reaches 60 ft. At present, the level stands at 22 ft above the dead storage level.
Engineers said that actually, the present water level is 11.84 tmcft and the drinking water part is only 3.5 tmcft while the rest is dead storage level. “We have reserved 3.5 tmcft only for drinking water purposes and we are not releasing water for fresh crops. 3,233 cusecs outflow is due to water that is being released for old and standing crops,” an engineer at KRS told Star of Mysore this morning.
When asked about low water storage level, he noted that as per the directive of Supreme Court water has been released in May to Tamil Nadu from KRS and Kabini.
“We have not released the June quota to TN as we are facing a drinking water problem. Likewise, it is not possible to release water to new crops and water will be released only if KRS Dam level crosses the 100 ft mark,” the Engineer explained.
In the Kabini Reservoir, there is a present storage level of 3 tmcft. The maximum is 2,284 ft and today’s level stands at 2,249 ft. While the Dam has a capacity of storing 19.25 tmcft, the present level is 17.75 tmcft of which only 3 tmcft is available for drinking with the rest coming under dead storage level — 2, 221 ft.
Meanwhile, farmers in Mysuru are expressing concerns due to the delayed onset of the monsoon, resulting in below-average rainfall. As of June 12, the region has received only 24 mm of rainfall, which is 33 percent below the average.
Interestingly, the pre-monsoon period witnessed higher-than-normal rainfall, which positively impacted agricultural activities. Farmers were able to complete sowing in approximately 32 percent of the total target area. During the period between May 1 and 23, Mysuru received a substantial rainfall of 134 mm, which was 56 percent above the normal levels.
According to reports in the past 90 years about 3600tmcft of water has reached the Sea.it is high time Karnataka take up the mekedatu balancing reservoir project near Kanakapura Bengaluru.This reservoir will help supply drinking water to Bengaluru.Tamilnadu can also go ahead with its own river linking project the Cauvery-Vellar-Vaigai-Gunnar river linking project so that water released from Mittur dam can reach south tamilnadu.Now that DMK and Congress governments are in tamilnadu and Karnataka best time to mutually sign an agreement that same amount of water that was released from KRS dam will be released fro Mekedatu.This mekedatu reservoir will reduce the amount of water that needs to be supplied from KRS to Bengaluru.
@Sanjay Kini
What a self-styled expert on :highways, railways, healthcare and ecology! You must be really a genius-that is what you seem to think.
Before that delusion, you need to correct your English usage.
Let me correct some sentences: “it is high time Karnataka TOOK up…., there is: ” METTUR DAM ..”
You have the tendency to use lowercase letters for places. “Tamil Nadu” and ” Mekedatu” should be the usage.
Idiots like you do not recognisethat the Cauvery water dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, going back to the days of the British Raj. The issues were not solved even when Tamil Nadu and Karnataka both had Congress governments for decades.
Again, idiots like you do not comprehend the fact that whatever the party rules Tamil Nadu, they agree on the Cauvery water issue and Mekedatu issue-it is above party lines.
Best for you to shut up, as you reveal more of your ignorance , whatever you post.
Fools like @Sanjay Kini , attempt to portray themselves as clever in posting such nonsense.
The huge problem in India is not to uusefully expolit the monsoon rains when they arrive, so that the water shortage problems are resolved. These monsoon rains are allowed to destroy the infrastructure, and India being a third world country is unable to harness them.
It is best for India to seek advice from Israel, arguably the best nation which has solutions in all issues regarding water.
Last year Tamil Nadu politicians wasted 60% of water released to TN from Karnataka.
If there was a Dam at border Indian river water could have stored inside Indian borders for Indian usage following Supreme court orders .
But Tamilnadu politicians have a ego problem to use Kaveri issue for their domestic politics when there any issues in Govt.
If dam was there out of 60% water wasted to sea some TMC could have be stored and released now as per Supreme court orders.
The history related to Kaveri water dispute dates back to the colonial days.
Like the river Danube in Europe, Kaveri flowing in Karnataka And Tamil Nadu has been key to the development of these 2 states. Besides KRS and Mettur Dams, Kaveri has 2 more dams in Tamil Nadu- the Mukkombu Dam near Trichy district and Kallanai in Tanjore district, which was constructed during the Chola period, making it the oldest Kaveri Dam still in operation..
The paddy fields of Tamil Nadu andthe Tanjore district are very important to Tamil Nad, since Chola days, when the river was called Ponni river. Saint Tyagaraja, the great music composer of Tiruvayyar, used to take bath in Kaveri, every day. That shows the sacrosanct aspect of Kaveri, similar to that ogf Ganga, for Tamil Nad-in Mysore district too.
To focus on the Kaveri dispute, there was a control unit at the above Mukkombu Dam, represented by the civil engineers of Karnataka and ?Tamil Nad during the British period who resolved the issue of water flow, and a small unit in Mysore which was responsible for informing the Wadiyar government of any outstanding issues in respect of water quotas.
The issue of Kaveri water sharing has been a core issue for Tamil Nad government- be it was the legislative council of the then Madras state during colonial days, or th government of any party there. since then. This is an issue in which every party in Tamil Nadu speaks with one voice. It is because, more than ythe nere water sharing , Kaveri influenced the Tamil Nad culture in those areas of ?Trichy and Tanjore for centuries.
Hence , it is not as simple as @Kini suggests. Greater minds than him failed to resolve this dipute over the 100 years at least.
@Purushotham
Your stupidity shows through your flippant post, which is born out of total ignorance.
Kaveri irrigates more paddy fields in Tamil Nadu than in Karnataka for decades.
You have not explained how :”Last year Tamil Nadu politicians wasted 60% of water released to TN from Karnataka”.
It is Mysore idiots like you-I hailed from Mysore, who bring shame to the city through your surface knowledge born out of stupidity. It is sad to see, how , the inhabitants of once great city have become so much ignorant.
a bunch of fools describing an elephant
Both Karnataka an Tamil Nadu should ask center to implement river water linkages through pipes without causing any damage to environment.