Irrigation department releases water from Ujani dam to avoid flooding during arrival of palkhis
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On Sunday, the dam began discharging water at a rate of 10,000 cusecs, which went up to 20,000 cusecs in the afternoon and reached 30,000 cusecs on Monday. Ujani's stock was at 77% of its storage capacity on Monday.
Officials from the irrigation department said the discharge was part of flood management and to keep some space in the dam to accommodate the inflow of water from upstream dams. By doing this, the department will be able to release water at a "controlled rate" and avoid flooding ahead of Ashadhi Ekadashi when lakhs of warkaris will visit Pandharpur and take a dip in the Bhima, they said.
Sources said Pune revenue devision could face a challenge if heavy rain continued during Ashadhi Ekadashi, forcing the irrigation department to release water into the Bhima at a higher rate.
As a precautionary step, the irrigation department has also been releasing water from Veer dam into the river for the last two days. Officials said the release from Ujani and Veer dams would be brought down in case of a drop in rainfall and inflow of water.
Water stock in most dams in and around Pune has been on the rise since last week owing to good spells. Nazare dam, located in the arid Saswad-Purandar known for less rainfall, too has recorded a good rise in water stock since the beginning of the monsoon. The irrigation department has warned of the release from this dam into the Karha river as live storage has reached 92%.
The irrigation department, in the backdrop of the ongoing palkhi processions, has alerted the local administrations in Pune, Satara and Solapur districts to take measures to stop people from venturing near the rivers and streams.
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Four dams hold 10 TMC
The collective water stock in four dams in the Khadakwasla circle reached 10.7 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) on Monday, which was 7 TMC more than last year's stock of 3.5 TMC on the same day. The irrigation department has continued the discharge of water from Khadakwasla dam into the Mutha river, though the release has been reduced to a rate of 684 cusecs. Panshet, Varasgaon, and Temghar received around 25mm rain in the last 24 hours ending on Monday.
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