500 cusecs of Krishna water to reach Poondi reservoir on 23.09.2024

CHENNAI: The Water Resources Department (WRD) informed the Krishna water discharged from Kandeleru dam will reach Poondi reservoir in Chennai on Monday.

The WRD noted that the city reservoir is likely to receive at least 500 cusecs of water. The water discharge would be increased gradually in the coming days depending on the water storage in the reservoirs, it said.

The Krishna water was expected to be released in April but there was a delay in the same due to insufficient storage in the Kandaleru dam. WRD had requested the Andhra Pradesh government to release the water from the reservoir when it reaches the maximum capacity.

The reservoir reached its maximum level following the recent rains in Andhra Pradesh. Therefore, the government released 1,100 cusecs of water for Chennai. Of which, approximately 500 cusecs of water will reach Poondi reservoir.

"The AP government should give 8 TMC of Krishna water as per the agreement between Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Since the water discharge has been delayed this year, and the onset of the northeast monsoon is only a month away, the neighbouring state will release water from the Kandaleru reservoir accordingly. If the northeast monsoon is a failure this year, we might need at least 5 TMC. But, when there are intense spells and floods like the previous year, the city reservoir requires only 1-2 TMC of Krishna water," said a senior WRD official.

As of Sunday, the major reservoirs in Chennai have 4,125 mcft of water, of which Poondi reservoir has 66 mcft, Red Hills 2,158 mcft, Chembarambakkam 1,103 mcft, Cholavaram 58 mcft, Kannankottai - Thervoykandigai 299 mcft, and Veeranam 449 mcft.