Dam it, there's no water for Bangalore

Dam it, there's no water for Bangalore

Rohith BR. Mysore

Bangalore is staring at a severe drinking water shortage. The Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) reservoir, which is the main source of drinking water for the city, is running out of water. According to engineers at the KRS dam, the water level in the reservoir is close to a point beyond which no water can be released from the dam. In fact, the level is the lowest in six years.
The present situation is being attributed to bad monsoon in the state. "If rain gods continue to play spoilsport, then there won't be any supply from the KRS, and Bangalore will have to depend on the Kabini reservoir for its supplies," said an engineer from the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB).
If that happens, then farmers in Mysore and Mandya will have to go without water. "This could start a water war," the engineer added. To make it worse, Karnataka is yet to release water to Tamil Nadu, which is also going through a dry patch.
"The water level at KRS at present is 72 feet, as against the maximum of storage capacity of 124.80 feet. It is close to the dead storage level (60 feet), beyond which no water can be released from the dam. Forget Bangalore, even Mysore and Mandya districts would face a severe water shortage," said Nathesh, an executive engineer with Cauvery Neeravari Nigam Limited, under whose jurisdiction the dam falls.
The water level, around the same time last year, was 102 feet. Statistics obtained by DNA from the executive engineer's office at the KRS shows that inflow to the reservoir has come down to just 386 cusecs (a measure of flow rate and short for cubic foot per second), as against 4,120 cusecs of water inflow in June last year.