Heavy rains in Pune deposit 4 TMC water in 24 hours, raising dam storage to 74 percent
Pune News: Heavy rains on July 24 and 25 have resulted in the reservoirs of Pune dams filling up to 75 percent of their capacity with 24 hours of rain adding almost 4 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water.
Till 5.30 pm on Thursday, cumulative water storage in the Khadakwasla, Panshet, Warasgaon and Temghar dams was 75.57% (22 TMC) up from 63.56% (18.53 TMC) till 5.30 pm on Wednesday. The water storage is likely to further increase considering the downpour, even as authorities have begun discharging water from Khadakwasla.
Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said, “There is heavy rain being reported in the catchment areas of all dams. As a result, water stock in these dams has substantially gone up, forcing authorities to release water at a higher rate.”
As the Khadakwasla Dam crossed the 100% mark on Wednesday, the irrigation department started releasing water from the dam from Thursday morning. In the last 48 hours, the irrigation department has released at least 1 TMC water from the Khadakwasla Dam. Water has also been released from the Mulshi Dam.
Apart from Khadakwasla, water was also released from the Mulshi Dam into the Mula River. The dam recorded 69.75% of its full capacity Thursday morning and considering the rainfall and inflow, water began to be discharged Thursday morning. The department had released 5,000 to 7,500 cusecs water by 5.30 pm on July 25.
The Warasgaon Dam, which is the largest among the four dams of the Khadakwasla Dam Cluster, experienced a significant increase in water levels, taking its stock to 69.49% (8.91 TMC). The Panshet Dam too crossed 80% as inflow increased in the past 24 hours. Till 5 pm on July 25, Panshet Dam had recorded 81.62% (8.69 TMC) water storage.
Meanwhile, water levels also increased in Bhama Askhed and Pawana as catchment areas received extremely heavy rain on July 24. According to the water resources department data, the Bhama Askhed and Pawana Dams reported 49.46% and 56.68% water storage, respectively.
The catchment areas of dams are receiving heavy rainfall while the surrounding ghat areas are receiving extreme category rainfall for the last 48 hours. This has led to the increase in water levels. “We are keeping an eye on the situation and water will be discharged after analyzing ground conditions,” said Shweta Kurde, executive engineer, Khadakwasla Dam Cluster.
