Irrigation engineers opened the gates of Karanja dam to release around 3,000 cusecs of water after the full reservoir level of 7.6 tmc ft. of water was breached on Saturday morning.
Three gates have been lifted up for about five inches. The discharge is between 2,500 to 3,000 cusecs (0.13 tmc ft. ) of water.
This is the first time in seven years that the quantum of discharge has reached this level, officials said. The inflow is estimated to be between 6,000 to 9,000 cusecs.
The Irrigation Department has issued a general warning to farmers in the downstream villages not to go near the river as it is likely to swell in three to four hours of the opening of the gates. “`We too have asked farmers not to venture into fields on the river bank and not to take cattle for grazing in low lying areas,”’ police said.
It rained in Bidar on Friday night and Saturday morning. “The district recorded 35 mm of rain while in some pockets in Humnabad and Basavakalyan, it exceeded 65 mm. It can cause damage to crops. Weather forecasters say there is a chance of rainfall in the coming two days also,’’ Joint Director of Agriculture K. Ziaullah said.
