Kodagu is facing the brunt of the downpour for nearly a week now, and landslips and flooding are reminiscent of the natural calamity that unfolded in the district last year.
The southwest monsoon was weak till the onset of August and the rainfall deficiency from June 1 to August 2 was 48%. The district average rainfall for the period was 838 mm but between August 3 and 8, the deficiency was reduced to 10%. The district average rainfall increased from 838 mm to 1,572 mm within the five days.
Similarly, Chikkamagaluru district, large parts of which have been flooded, faced a drought-like situation till August 2 as the rainfall deficiency was 36% and the cumulative rainfall from June 1 to August 2 was 558 mm. But since then, the deficiency has not only been reduced, but the cumulative rainfall is now 982 mm, which is 1% above normal.
KRS water level
As a result, there is heavy inflow into the reservoirs in the downstream. The water level in the Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS), near Srirangapatana in Mandya district, was hovering at 102-ft mark on Friday evening as against the full-reservoir level of 124.8 ft. But five days ago, it was not even expected to touch the 100-feet mark this year in view of the poor rainfall.
The KRS was receiving inflow at the rate of 73,284 cusecs as on 6 p.m. on Friday and the live storage went up to 16.51 tmcft.
Officials said the inflow rate was likely to exceed 1.1 lakh cusecs by Saturday owing to torrential rain in the catchment area of the Cauvery in Kodagu and that of the Hemavati in Hassan district.
Officials anticipate an increase in the discharge from the Hemavati reservoir, which will augment the inflow into the KRS. Not withstanding the rise in inflow, the live storage in the KRS is only 37% of its full capacity of 45.05 tmcft.
The inflow into the Hemavati reservoir has increased and it was pegged at 74.14 cusecs on Friday morning. The water level in the reservoir was hovering at 2,912 ft as against the FRL of 2,922 ft. It is 75% of the full capacity of 35.76 tmcft.
The Kabini reservoir in H.D. Kote in Mysuru district is full to the brim but for a buffer of 2 ft maintained by the authorities as a safety measure. The outflow from the reservoir was increased to the rate of 1.25 lakh cusecs, a record for the reservoir in recent years, and the water level was hovering at 2281.3 ft as against the FRL of 2,289 ft. The reservoir has attained 80% of its storage capacity.
The inflow into Harangi reservoir in Kodagu was at the rate of over 25,600 cusecs and the live storage was 6.21 tmcft, which is 77% of its capacity to hold 8.07 tmcft.
