Drying Harangi reservoir worries farmers

The water level in Harangi reservoir in the district has depleted drastically.

During the monsoon, the dam was full and the release of excess water to the river had inundated parts of Kushalnagar, Koodige, Koodumangaluru and other villages situated on the banks of the river.

A huge quantity of water was released from the reservoir to downstream KRS (Krishnaraja Sagara) dam during heavy rainfall and floods last year.

According to available statistics, 72.62 tmcft of water was released from the reservoir to the river and 60.32 tmcft was released to the canals. The reservoir has a storage capacity of 8.5 tmcft. At present, the reservoir has only 2 tmcft water. The farmers are now worried about saving their crops.

A situation has arisen where the authorities are not in a position to release water from the reservoir to the command areas, said an engineer.

The maximum storage level in the reservoir is 2,859 ft. The water level is 2809.05 ft now. At present, the inflow of water into the reservoir is 85 cusecs and 10 cusecs is released into the river and canals. Last year, the water level was 2,819 feet during the corresponding period and 2.63 tmcft was available, with an inflow of 115 cusecs of water. The dead storage in the reservoir is 0.75 tmcft.

“The water from the reservoir is used by farmers in Kodagu, Hassan and Mysuru districts. With the depleting water level, the water is unlikely to be released for summer crops,” said sources in the dam.