A preliminary flood alert was sounded on Sunday by authorities to people living near the banks of Kosasthalaiyar River in Tiruvallur district because the nearby Poondi Reservoir is predicted to succeed in its full capacity.
In view of the rising inflow thanks to rains, 1,000 cusecs of surplus water would be released starting 2 PM on Sunday and if inflow continued to extend, additional quantum shall even be released in phases, a province Water Resources Department communique said.
The WRD, sounding the initial alert, asked the Tiruvallur District administration to require steps to accommodate people living in low lying areas to safe locations and alert residents.
A bunch of villages, including Nambakkam and Krishnapuram and Chennai’s suburbs like Ennore and Manali, falling under Tiruvallur District, are among the downstream areas.
An important drinkable source for Chennai, the Sathyamurthi Sagar Reservoir, popularly referred to as Poondi Reservoir (34.58 square kilometers) is found in Tiruvallur District.
The dam’s height (water storage level) is 35 feet and total capacity is 3,231 million cubic feet. As on Sunday, the water level is at 33.95 feet and also the capacity has touched 2,807 mcft and also the inflow is 1,691 cusecs.
As inflow increases thanks to seasonal rains, the reservoir’s storage is rising fast. Since it’s expected that the storage would touch 34 feet, it’s been planned to discharge surplus water as a precautionary measure, considering the dam’s safety as per rules.
If inflow continued to extend, phased discharge of additional surplus water (over and above the proposed 1,000 cusecs) would be made.
