Krishna water discharged from Andhra Pradesh reaches T.N. border on September 23

Krishna water that was discharged from Andhra Pradesh reached Tamil Nadu border in Uthukottai, Tiruvallur district on Monday (September 23, 2024) morning. The water released from Kandaleru reservoir in Andhra Pradesh is expected to boost Chennai’s dwindling drinking water resources.

Officials of Water Resources Department, including M. Janaki, Chief Engineer, Chennai Region, and Gummidipoondi MLA T.J. Govindarajan, offered floral tribute at the State’s entry point of the Kandaleru Poondi canal as a welcome gesture.

Water released into Kandaleru Poondi canal on Thursday night travelled 152 km and touched Tamil Nadu border around 10 a.m. About 210 cubic feet per second (cusecs) of water was received at Uthukottai and this is expected to gradually increase in the next few days.

N.Thilaikarasi, Executive Engineer, Krishna Water Supply Project Division, WRD, said the AP authorities discharged about 1,300 cusecs of water from Kandaleru reservoir and it is also fed to Tirupati requirements before reaching Tamil Nadu.

Krishna water, which is considered one of the lifelines of Chennai water supply, will travel another 25 km to reach Poondi reservoir where it will be stored for city supply.

“We expect to receive a flow of minimum of 500-600 cusecs in two or three days. If we receive a steady flow of 500 cusecs, we will be able to store nearly 1,300 million cubic feet (mcft) of water in a month,” she said.

The five reservoirs that store drinking water for Chennai now have a combined storage of 3,656 mcft against their total capacity of 11, 757 mcft. Veeranam tank in Cuddalore district is also used to meet Chennai’s drinking water needs.

Chennai was previously supplied with 2,412 mcft of Krishna water between July 1 and October 10 last year. However, water released for July- October was delayed this year due to low storage in Andhra Pradesh reservoirs.

The department plans to boost resources in city reservoirs until the onset of Northeast monsoon by October end.

Chennai now is supplied with nearly 1,113 million litres of water daily from multiple sources, including reservoirs and desalination plants.

Published - September 23, 2024 03:38 pm IST