108 reservoirs in state filled up to 67%

Vijayawada: As many as 108 reservoirs across the state got filled up to 67 per cent of their storage capacity by Thursday owing to excess rainfall in the months of June and July in state, prompting officials to discharge water from various dams.

Recently, the Meteorological Department noted that Andhra Pradesh received excess rainfall for the period from June 1 to July 31, amounting to a cumulative rainfall of 301.4 mm, which is 34 per cent higher than the normal cumulative rainfall of 225.2 mm.

Further, it forecast the likelihood of above normal rainfall over south coastal Andhra Pradesh (SCAP) and Rayalaseema, and normal to below normal rainfall over north coastal Andhra Pradesh in August.

The Andhra Pradesh Water Resources Information & Management System (APWRIMS) said the current water storage including in all minor, major and other reservoirs, is over 657 tmc ft or 67 per cent. It was only 46 per cent a year ago at 456 tmc ft.

The total capacity of all the reservoirs at Full Reservoir Level (FRL) is pegged at 983.49 TMC with a flood cushion of 326.15 tmc ft.

According to the latest APWRIMS data, water level at Srisailam reservoir, a major reservoir, was at 882.6 ft, followed by Nagarjuna Sagar reservoir (585.4 ft), Pulichintala Project (167.88 ft) and Prakasam Barrage (57.05 ft).

Consequently, floodwater inflows are being discharged at various dams.

Over 2.67 lakh cusecs of floodwater was discharged at Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada by 6 am on Thursday, AP State Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA) managing director R Kurmanadh said in a press release.

By 7 pm on Wednesday, 47,235 cusecs of floodwater was released at Sunkesula Barrage, Srisailam Dam (4.2 lakh cusecs), Nagarjuna Sagar (2.7 lakh cusecs) and Pulichintala Project (2.88 lakh cusecs).

Considering the rising floodwaters in Krishna river, Kurmanadh alerted people in the riparian villages and settlements to be cautious, avoiding navigation of all kinds.