Chennai: Rain leaves reservoirs full, surplus let out of Chembarambakkam

CHENNAI: Rain over the past two days in the city and its suburbs has increased the level in the reservoirs. State PWD authorities have begun released water at 250 cubic feet per second (cusecs) from the Chembarambakkam reservoir, one of the five supplying Chennai.
A senior PWD engineer said the inflow at Chembarambakkam on Sunday night was 1,300 cusecs and reduced to 500 cusecs on Monday. Last week, the storage level at the reservoir was 3,276 million cubic feet (mcft) against the full capacity of 3,645 mcft. After the spells of rain on Sunday and Monday, the level is now 3,509 mcft, 96% of its total capacity. The official said that if the rain continues, the PWD would continue to maintain the release of water at 250 cusecs.
This if the first time in the last six years that the Chembarambakkam reservoir has reached 96% of its full capacity in June. In the same month in 2020 and 2021, the water level had not crossed 2,300 mcft, said Metrowater authorities.
T the sudden downpour in the catchment areas of Chembarambakkam reservoir has also led to the PWD authorities stopping the release of Krishna water from Poondi reservoir to Chembarambakkam. The combined storage level in the five reservoirs, excluding Veeranam lake in Cuddalore district, on Tuesday stood at 8,170 mcft against the capacity of 11,757 mcft. The storage level in Veeranam lake on Tuesday was 140 mcft against a capacity of 1,465 mcft.
Metrowater also has the quarries at Sikkarayapuram and Erumaiyur as standby sources from which no water has been drawn so far. Officials of the agency believe the regular supply to residents of core city and added areas can be maintained without any problem for at least eight months with the current storage level.
Chennai city gets about 30% of its annual water requirements from the ongoing southwest monsoon, which during the June-September period covers almost the entire country, and more than 65%, the majority, from the northeast monsoon that sets in around the middle of October and lasts till the end of the year. The rainfall over the city over the past couple of years has been above normal, leading to inundation and other problems.