Not withstanding the signs of monsoon revival in the Cauvery basin, especially in Kodagu and parts of Chikkamagalur, concerns remain over the storage positions in the major reservoirs.
While Harangi is nearing its full reservoir level of 2,859 feet, the gross capacity of the dam is only 8.50 thousand million cubic feet (tmc ft).
With respect to Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) in the downstream, the inflow increased to 9,514 cusecs on Sunday, July 23, shoring up hopes that the water level would increase. But for this, the Cauvery catchment should receive copious rains as at Bhagamandala, which recorded 238 mm of rainfall during the 24-hour period ending 8.30 a.m. on Sunday. A one-off rainy day will not help sustain the inflow which during peak monsoon has crossed 100,000 cusecs in the past. The gross storage capacity of the KRS is 49.45 tmc ft. against which the storage on Sunday, was 17.05 tmc feet which is 34 per cent of its actual capacity.
