Tirumala Dams Full Due to Heavy Rains Brought By Cyclone Michaung

TIRUPATI: All five major dams in the hill town of Tirumala have reached their full storage capacity as heavy rainfall caused by Cyclone Michaung lashed the region over the past four days.

TTD officials said the current reserves in all these dams would suffice to meet the requirements of the temple town for over 214 days. The relentless downpour, particularly the 100mm rainfall that lashed the hill town since Sunday, filled the chief water sources like the Papavinasanam, Akasaganga, Gogarbham, Kumaradhara and Pasupudhara dams.

The water level at Papavinasanam dam, the largest in Tirumala, reached 693.60 metres against its full capacity of 697.14 metres.

The Gogarbham dam currently has 2,887 lakh gallons of water against its capacity of 2,894 lakh gallons.

The TTD partially opened the floodgates of Papavinasanam and Gogarbham dams releasing water downstream. The Akasaganga dam water level reached 859.80 metres against its full level of 865 metres. The Kumaradhara and Pasupu Dhara dams reached the levels of 896.20 metres and 895.90 metres against their full capacities of 898.24 metres and 898.28 metres.

In view of the heavy rain and foggy condition, TTD has banned two-wheelers on the twin ghat roads between Tirumala and Tirupati, except between 6am and 8pm until the weather normalises. The roads leading to the Papavinasanam and the Silathoranam tourism spots have also been closed due to the inclement weather.

TTD kept a close watch on landslide prone areas, preemptively removing trees that could fall in heavy winds. Landslides have been reported at some points on the second ghat road.

TTD official V Veerabrahmam inspected the ghat roads on Monday evening and recommended emergency arrangements for devotees and sought their cooperation to tide over the present situations.

The heavy rainfall also resulted in water overflowing via Malwadai Gundam and Kapila Theertham falls, offering a visual treat to the devotees and the local population.

However, TTD has restricted access to the Kapila Theertham temple due to the heavy water flow.