Flood alert sounded in Panchkula

The Panchkula district administration sounded a high alert after deciding to discharge water from the Kaushalya dam as it inches towards the danger mark on Sunday.

The water level had reached 476.2m at the time of filing this report around 9pm. The full reservoir level is 478m.

“The floodgates are yet to be opened, but we are discharging water from time to time to reduce the pressure on the dam structure. But after the reservoir reaches its full capacity, the floodgates will be opened. It can happen any time,” said Panchkula deputy commissioner Mukesh Kumar Ahuja, adding that the water level had breached the danger mark by 4m on Saturday night as well.

“The discharge in the river is likely to increase due to the heavy rainfall in the catchment area,” said a senior Haryana irrigation department official.

The DC has directed all officers concerned with disaster management not to leave their stations till the situation returns to normal. Tehsildars have been ordered to make public announcements.

First Published: Aug 19, 2019 00:08 IST