As the dispute over Cauvery water between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu rages on, a comparison of the present water levels in the four main reservoirs in Cauvery basin with that of last year brings out the distress situation in the State.
There are four main reservoirs in the Cauvery basin - Harangi, Hemavathi, KRS and Kabini. The water level in KRS reservoir, which stood at 123.7 ft on September 16 last year, stands at 110.63 ft on the same day this year. The water levels in Hemavathi is 4.53 ft less compared to last year. Similarly, statistics maintained by the Karnataka State Disaster Monitoring Centre and Water Resources Development Organisation, Harangi and Kabini, also have lower reservoir levels this year.
Karnataka State Disaster Monitoring Centre director V S Prakash said the below-average rainfall in the catchment areas of Cauvery river and its tributaries was the main reason for the reduced inflow. The rainfall in Kodagu last week stood at 36mm as against average 43 mm. The rainfall in Wayanad region, another major catchment area, was deficient by 63 per cent last week, Prakash pointed out.
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