This is the first time since 2010 that the dam has reached its full reservoir level (FRL) by the last week of October.
The water level of Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) dam on river Kaveri in Karnataka reached a maximum height of 124.80 feet on 29 October.
The inflow into the reservoir was 8,767 cusecs (cubic feet per second) and the outflow was estimated at 3,615 cusecs. The storage in the reservoir is 49.452 thousand million cubic feet (tmc ft), which is the maximum gross storage capacity.
This is the first time since 2010 that the dam has reached its full reservoir level (FRL) by the last week of October during the monsoon season. According to KRS officials, the dam had attained FRL in October 1983, 1984, 1995 and 2010.
During a normal monsoon, the reservoir reaches FRL (124.80 ft) sometime in the last week of July or in August.
This year, after good rains during June and July, the Cauvery catchment area in Kodagu has stopped raining, which has seen a deficit of about 25%. As a result, the water level in the reservoir did not rise above the 120 ft mark even in September, and subsequently began to decrease as a result of the regular discharge of water from the crest gates.
But heavy rains in October increased the inflow into the reservoir, and the dam attained its FRL on 29 October, bringing great relief to officials and farmers in Karnataka.
As a result of the KRS receiving the FRL, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai is expected to visit the dam in the next few days to express his gratitude to Cauvery.
The water level in the Kabini reservoir at HD Kota was 2,283.60 feet, while the FRL was 2,284 feet. The dam holds 19.25 tmc ft of water against a maximum gross storage capacity of 19.25 tmc ft.
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