The authorities monitoring water distribution in Mysore do not foresee a water crisis in the city this summer, as both the Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) and Kabini reservoirs, the two main sources of drinking water for the region, have sufficient storage.
For several decades, Mysore’s drinking water came from the Cauvery via KRS reservoir. The river is still the primary source of water for nearly 50 per cent of the city, but a couple of years back, parts of it started receiving water from the Kabini dam.
Mysore faced a severe water crisis last summer, as the KRS dam’s water-level dropped close to dead storage. Even places such as Bangalore, Mandya and Ramanagaram faced a water crisis. When the water level had dropped to 65 ft, water was pumped from the riverbed using four heavy-duty emergency pumps to ensure supply.
This year, the situation is better, thanks to good rainfall in the dam’s catchment area — Kodagu — last year. The water-level on Monday stood at 109.39 ft as against the maximum storage level of 124.8 ft. The inflow was 236 cusecs, and the outflow (to the irrigation canals) 3,256 cusecs, according to official sources here. Last year, the water-level in the KRS stood at 77.5 ft.
In Kabini dam, the water-level on Monday was 2,275.86 ft as against the maximum of 2,284 ft. The inflow was 107 cusecs; there was no outflow. Last year, the reservoir’s water-level was 2,251.62 ft.
A senior official at Vani Vilas Water Works (VVWW), which monitors water distribution here, told The Hindu that keeping this mind, Mysore was unlikely to face water crisis this year. With Kabini dam also catering to Mysore’s water needs, a majority of the city is being supplied with surface water barring some pockets that still depend on ground water. The Kabini project supplies many localities in the city that depend on groundwater.
Nevertheless, VVWW authorities do not want to take any chances.
They have started identifying borewells yielding less water and begun working to rejuvenate them. Many borewells had gone dry last year, as the groundwater table had been depleted. The VVWW also wants to procure more tankers to supply water to areas hit by distribution problems or low water pressure.
