Showers bring relief, fill Tirumala reservoirs
The water in the reservoirs will suffice the needs of pilgrims and denizens for the next 441 days.
TIRUPATI: The abode of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala has overcome the shortage of water with the bountiful rains that the hill station received in the past three days under the influence of a depression in the Bay of Bengal.
The heavy downpour received by the hill town from November 21 to 23 increased the storage in the five reservoirs at Tirumala by 1880.49 lakh gallons of water. With these recent showers, the water in the reservoirs will suffice the needs of pilgrims and denizens for the next 441 days.
According to the statistics given by the Tirumala Tirupati Devastanam (TTD), the hill town received 144 mm of rainfall in just three days from November 21 to 23.
The earlier statistics reveal that Tirumala received the highest ever rainfall of 2056 mm in 1996, followed by 2028 mm in 2005 and 1708 mm in 2007.
According to unconfirmed reports, the hill town has received a rainfall of 1200 to 1400 mm this year so far.
The hill town has five drinking water reservoirs which were created to meet the requirements of pilgrims. The existing water is nearly 7268 lakh gallons in the five reservoirs, which have a combined water storage capacity of 14,304 lakh gallons.
About 3840 lakh gallons of water have been added to Kumaradhara and Pasupudhara reservoirs which are situated about 9 km away on the north-western side of Tirumala with a total storage capacity of 5845 lakh gallons.
While the oldest reservoir, Papavinasanam located about 5 km from Tirumala with a total storage capacity of 5215 lakh gallons, has received 2825 lakh gallons of water, the Gogarbham and Akasa-ganga dams situated on the Papavinasanam road have added 501 and 103 lakh gallons respectively.
The TTD’s water works wing officials believe that the rainfall received so far will suffice the drinking water needs of the temple town for another 441 days.
Meanwhile, the incessant rains in Tirumala brought cheers to the multitude of visiting pilgrims and the torrents gushing out of the hill rocks provided a feast to the eyes of many.
The torrents including Chakra theertham, Malav-adi Gundam, and Kapila theertham were gliding swiftly from hill rocks, delighting the devotees. The pilgrims captured the beauty of the Seshachala ranges and the torrents in their mobile phones.