WRD requests A.P. for Krishna water discharge again to boost sinking storage in Chennai reservoirs

The WRD used the dry period to complete the long-pending projects of repairing the shutters of Poondi reservoir and the ₹9.84-crore project to arrest leaks and ensure dam safety will be completed by mid-September.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

With the dwindling storage in city reservoirs, the Water Resources Department has again requested the Andhra Pradesh government to discharge Krishna water from Kandaleru reservoir by mid-September.

The five reservoirs, including Chembarambakkam and Red Hills, that supply drinking water to Chennai, have a combined storage of 4,159 million cubic feet of water (mcft) — it is 35.47% of their capacity. Water managers noted that the available resources would last till November end to sustain daily water supply to the city.

This is the second time since June that the department has requested the A.P. government to release Krishna water. However, there was a delay in releasing water to Chennai due to low storage in the A.P. reservoirs. “We have requested for water discharge again as the storage in Kandaleru reservoir is likely to improve by next month. Water released from A.P. will help boost sinking storage in the city reservoirs until the arrival of Northeast monsoon,” said a WRD official.

Second spell

Chennai is due to receive 8,000 mcft of Krishna water during second spell between June and October this year. It had previously received 2,412 mcft of Krishna water between July 1 and October 6 in 2023. The WRD had made use of the dry period to complete the long-pending projects of repairing the shutters of Poondi reservoir, which is the major storage point of Krishna water. The ₹9.84-crore project to arrest leaks and ensure dam safety would be completed by mid-September.

According to officials, the channels linking surplus of the reservoirs and vulnerable portions of the Kandaleru Poondi canal, which conveys Krishna water, have also been improved.

The five city reservoirs and the Veeranam tank in Cuddalore district contribute a major share of the city’s drinking water supply of 1,102 million litres of water a day.

Work at Nemmeli desalination plant

Chennai Metrowater has reduced production of water in the 110-mld Nemmeli desalination plant to facilitate work to replace reverse osmosis membranes, a crucial component to treat sea water. It has also decreased purchase of water from Minjur desalination plant.

“We are supplying additional amount of water from Red Hills reservoir to north Chennai. Water from Metrowater-owned well fields in Poondi and Tamaraipakkam is also being used to feed northern areas instead of desalinated water,” said an official.

However, the water agency has no plans of using water stored in abandoned quarries as of now since the present resources are sufficient for seamless water supply.

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