<p>The statement made by water resources minister Basavaraj Bommai that dead storage will be used if water crisis worsened in the state, has drawn flak. According to experts, drawing water from reservoirs after water reaches dead storage will hamper the stability of the dam. <br /><br /></p>.<p>However, sources at Kabini and Krishnaraja Sagar reservoirs said that the state government will be forced to use water from dead storage if water situation worsens, or at worst, rain fails again.<br /><br />Dead storage<br /><br />Dead storage refers to a water level at the dam, from where the water cannot be drained through gravity to the canals connecting various regions.<br /><br />Meanwhile, at a meeting of Cauvery Technical Advisoy Committee(CTAC) formed under the aegis of Institution of Engineers, held here on Wednesday, retired executive engineers of various departments discussed the pros and cons of using dead storage water and the water situation in the state.<br /><br />Former secretary of minor irrigation department, Vijay Raghavan said that sudden draw down of water ‘will damage the dam’. <br /><br />However, he said that gradual drawing of water from dam, after dead storage is reached reduces the affect on the dam. <br /><br />‘Gradual drawing is releasing or pumping 5-10 per cent of the available water in the dam, more than which is sudden drawing,’ he said.<br /><br />Retired chief executive engineer of Karnataka Power Corporation, V Seetharam said that since Kabini, an earthen dam was designed for empty and full conditions, gradual draw down of water would not affect the dam. However, sudden drawn down will damage it.<br /><br />Construction<br /><br />The situation of Krishnaraja Sagar dam, which is constructed using both earth and mortar is similar, he said. <br /><br />Convenor of CTAC, M Lakshmana said that the total quantity of drawable water in KRS, Kabini, Harangi and Hemavathi was 8.25 TMC only, which was a prelude to the looming water crisis. <br /><br />He said that water is being already supplied using tractors and tanks to regions where there was no water in the month of January, he said.<br /><br />Sudden drawing of water will create an imbalance in the retaining pressure of the dam affecting its tensile and compressive strength, he said.</p>
<p>The statement made by water resources minister Basavaraj Bommai that dead storage will be used if water crisis worsened in the state, has drawn flak. According to experts, drawing water from reservoirs after water reaches dead storage will hamper the stability of the dam. <br /><br /></p>.<p>However, sources at Kabini and Krishnaraja Sagar reservoirs said that the state government will be forced to use water from dead storage if water situation worsens, or at worst, rain fails again.<br /><br />Dead storage<br /><br />Dead storage refers to a water level at the dam, from where the water cannot be drained through gravity to the canals connecting various regions.<br /><br />Meanwhile, at a meeting of Cauvery Technical Advisoy Committee(CTAC) formed under the aegis of Institution of Engineers, held here on Wednesday, retired executive engineers of various departments discussed the pros and cons of using dead storage water and the water situation in the state.<br /><br />Former secretary of minor irrigation department, Vijay Raghavan said that sudden draw down of water ‘will damage the dam’. <br /><br />However, he said that gradual drawing of water from dam, after dead storage is reached reduces the affect on the dam. <br /><br />‘Gradual drawing is releasing or pumping 5-10 per cent of the available water in the dam, more than which is sudden drawing,’ he said.<br /><br />Retired chief executive engineer of Karnataka Power Corporation, V Seetharam said that since Kabini, an earthen dam was designed for empty and full conditions, gradual draw down of water would not affect the dam. However, sudden drawn down will damage it.<br /><br />Construction<br /><br />The situation of Krishnaraja Sagar dam, which is constructed using both earth and mortar is similar, he said. <br /><br />Convenor of CTAC, M Lakshmana said that the total quantity of drawable water in KRS, Kabini, Harangi and Hemavathi was 8.25 TMC only, which was a prelude to the looming water crisis. <br /><br />He said that water is being already supplied using tractors and tanks to regions where there was no water in the month of January, he said.<br /><br />Sudden drawing of water will create an imbalance in the retaining pressure of the dam affecting its tensile and compressive strength, he said.</p>
