Over 1 lakh cusecs of water released from Mettur dam

COIMBATORE: River Cauvery is in high spate as one lakh cusecs of water have been released from the Stanley Reservoir in Mettur following heavy inflow on Tuesday.

Following copious rains in catchment areas, the inflow into the dam, which stays at its full capacity since July 16, surged to more than one lakh cusecs on Tuesday evening.

From 42,000 cusecs on Tuesday morning, the inflow rose to 76,000 cusecs in the evening and further to over one lakh cusecs by night. As the entire inflow is released, a flood alert has been sounded in the Cauvery basin districts.

Similarly, water level in the Bhavani Sagar dam in Erode district has crossed above its benchmark 100 feet as against its full reservoir capacity of 105 feet on Tuesday. Besides sounding a flood alert along the banks of River Bhavani, the district administration has also imposed restrictions on people visiting the dam site for ‘aadi perukku’ festival on Wednesday.

Further, the administration has banned people from entering the flooded river at Bhavani ‘Kooduthurai’ for ‘aadi perukku’.

Meanwhile, the Nilgiris District Collector SP Amrith declared a holiday for schools and colleges in the district on Wednesday given the expected rains.

Third flood warning from Vaigai dam

Madurai: The Water Resources Division of the Public Works Department issued a third flood warning on Tuesday morning as the water level in Vaigai dam touched 69 feet against its maximum capacity of 71 feet. According to P Murugesan, Assistant Executive Engineer, PWD, Vaigai dam, the consistent amount of rainfall has brought in to raise the level and it’s inching close to reaching 70 ft by Wednesday morning. Once the level touches 70 feet, excess water will be released. Therefore, people living on the riverbanks along Theni, Madurai, Dindigul, Sivaganga and Ramanathapuram need to be cautious. The people are also advised not to get into the river, sources said.