Vaigai dam level rises, but officials cautious of supply to Madurai

In May, the storage level in Vaigai dam touched 21 feet, which was the lowest recorded in the last decade.

July 28, 2014 10:06 am | Updated 01:46 pm IST - MADURAI

With Periyar dam catchment areas continuing to receive rainfall, resulting in steady discharge from the dam, water level in Vaigai dam touched 34.19 feet on Sunday.

Public Works Department (PWD) officials said the rain had brought a copious inflow into Periyar dam. “Around 955 cusecs of water is being discharged for the last few days, and 200 cusecs of it is released to Cumbum valley,” an official said.

Over 50 mm of rainfall has been recorded in Periyar dam areas during the last five days alone. Places such as Uttamapalayam, Thaniamangalam and Shanmuganadhi too received steady rainfall on Saturday. “Vaigai dam has received an inflow of over 500 cusecs during the last three days, which has contributed to the steady increase in the level. While the level was a little over 26 feet on July 18, it has now gone up by 8 feet,” he added.

In May, the storage level in Vaigai dam touched 21 feet, which was the lowest recorded in the last decade.

The 60 cusecs being supplied to Madurai city by the Corporation was cut to 40 cusecs.

Despite the level steadily rising in Vaigai dam, the standard quantity of 40 cusecs still continues to be drawn by Madurai Corporation every day to meet the city’s drinking water needs.

A senior PWD official said they were taking precautions to ensure that the dam had sufficient storage to meet the drinking water needs of the city over the next few months in case of delayed monsoons.

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