1 week Ago
Chennai: The water level in Tamil Nadu's Mettur Dam, located in the Salem district, has risen to 92 feet after heavy rains lashed its catchment areas, officials confirmed on Wednesday. The inflow into the dam, which had surged due to the northeast monsoon, caused the water release to be reduced from the usual 7,000 cusecs to 500 cusecs. The dam now holds a total of 54.
96 TMC of water. With the northeast monsoon affecting southern states, including the Mettur Dam’s catchment areas, the inflow increased from 15,531 cusecs on Tuesday to 16,196 cusecs on Wednesday. As a result, the release of water for irrigation via the East-West Canal has been further reduced, from 500 cusecs to 300 cusecs.
and Karnataka have also filled the Krishnarajasagar and Kabini dams in the Cauvery catchment. The surplus water from these dams is released into the Cauvery River, which reaches the Mettur Dam through Hogenakkal in the Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu. The Mettur Dam, with a full capacity of 120 feet and a storage potential of 93.
47 TMC, plays a crucial role in Tamil Nadu's irrigation system. The previous AIADMK government, led by Chief Minister K. Palaniswami, launched the Mettur Surplus Water Scheme, also known as the Sarabanga Lift Irrigation Project, in 2021.
The project aims to divert surplus floodwaters released from the Mettur Dam into 100 lakes in the region for irrigation and drinking purposes. Once the dam reaches its full capacity, water is diverted through canals to the Thimmampatti Pump House. From there, excess water is channelled to M.
Kallipatti Lake and Nangavalli Lake through pipelines. The scheme is designed to irrigate 4,238 acres of agricultural land across 40 villages and provide drinking water to 38 villages. As the northeast monsoon continues to bring heavy rains to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, particularly in the Cauvery catchment areas, the water level in Mettur Dam is expected to rise further in the coming days.
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