Hyderabad: Most irrigation projects were full to the brim on Sunday. Massive quantities from the Manjira river rapidly filled up the 17.8-tmc ft Nizamsagar dam. Elsewhere, 2 lakh cusecs of water is reaching Srisailam where the level has climbed to 879.7 ft against the maximum level of 885 ft. It was 876 ft on Saturday.
Water at the Nizamsagar project stood at 1,400 ft against the full level of 1405 ft on Sunday, and the dam was holding 11.40 tmc ft of water. Because of the flood in the Manjira touching 1.9 lakh cusecs, officials opened 10 crest gates at Nizamsagar to send 60,000 cusecs downstream. The water will reach Sriramsagar, which is already full. Officials are releasing 4.02 lakh cusecs, which is flowing into the Godavari River.
At Yellampally near Mancherial town in Adilabad district, officials were releasing 4.5 lakh cusecs into the Godavari. The water will go to the Bay of Bengal via Dowaleswaram near Rajahmundry.
The Lower Manair Dam across the Manair River near Karimnagar has started getting huge inflows from Kakatiya canal — from the Sriramsagar project — and from the river. It now holds 13 tmc ft against full capacity of 24 tmc ft. This dam is the principal source for drinking water for Karimangar as well as the area under the Srira-msagar project in Wara-ngal district. Officials say LMD will fill up in two days and surplus waters will have to be released to Manair river.
Singur Dam built across Manjeera in Medak district was in spate but inflows reduced to 40,000 cusecs on Saturday midnight. That led to officials closing the crest gates and deciding to build up capacity in the dam. But on Sunday morning when floods again increased to 60,000 cusecs with more expected, officials reopened Singur’s gates and released 62,000 cusecs downstream which will join Nizam Sagar project.
In a related development, due to heavy flood in the range of two lakh cusecs reaching Srisailam dam from Jurala, for the first time in the current season, officials at Srisailam started releasing around 73,000 cusecs through power houses.
