Monsoon sets in, water level rises in Cauvery basin dams

Mysuru: The South West Monsoon appears to have arrived in the nick of time as the water level in the reservoirs of the Cauvery catchment area has almost touched rock bottom. The water in the Krishnaraja Sagar dam, for instance, is just two feet away from dead storage.

But with Bagamandala receiving some showers on Friday and the weathermen predicting six to seven per cent more rainfall this  South West Monsoon in South Interior Karnataka and the Cauvery catchment area, hopes have risen about the reservoirs filling up soon.

Head of agro meteorology at the University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Prof M G Rajegowda says the South West Monsoon is expected to be copious over Karnataka this year. “Going by the forecast it could be 106 per cent this year. While the state receives 865mm rain during an average South West Monsoon, it is expected to record 900mm of rainfall this year,” he reveals.

South Interior Karnataka, which includes the Cauvery catchment area, usually receives an average rainfall of 450mm. But this year it could receive 480mm to 500mm of rain during the South West Monsoon, according to the professor.

The six to seven per cent additional rain expected could make a huge difference to the Cauvery reservoirs as the water level in KRS was 76.48 feet on Friday, just two feet away from its dead storage level of 74 feet. The dam has a capacity to hold 124.80feet of water.  

The Hemavathi reservoir had a water level of 2862 feet on Friday as against its capacity to hold 2922 feet.  And at Kabini, the water level stood at 2241.75 feet as against its capacity of 2284 feet. The Harangi reservoir had a storage of 2797.77 feet on Friday as against its capacity to hold 2859 feet of water.