Dams filling fast in Punjab, officials on toes

The extremely heavy rainfall in the catchment area in the past three days is filling the reservoirs in the state at a rapid pace, mounting the worries of authorities.

With inflow rising, the Bhakra Beas management Board (BBMB) that controls Bhakra Dam and Pong Dam and Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) that manages Ranjit Sagar Dam are planning to release the ‘surplus’ water in a controlled manner.

For the purpose, the BBMB is expected to hold a meeting with partner states - Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi on Wednesday.

Adding to the agencies’ concerns is the fact that the filing season of reservoirs continues till September 20, and the inflow right now is three times more than the average intake during the beginning of the season.

In three days, Bhakra, which is built on Sutlej, has witnessed a 21-ft jump in its water level, raising alarm bells. The maximum filling capacity of the reservoir is 1,680 ft, and the flood gate level is 1,645 ft. The level on Tuesday was 1,621 ft.

According to officials, the reservoir received inflows up to 2.2 lakh cusecs which on Tuesday receded to 100,590 cusecs. The reservoir is 58% full.

“As per the norms set by the BBMB, the reservoir should fill up to 1,650 ft by July 31. The speed of filling this time is a matter of concern,” said a senior BBMB official, who didn’t want to be named.

BBMB secretary Satish Singla said the partner states will decide the further course of action as the board has decided not to spill (waste) the water. “We will use the surplus water to generate power,” he added. The dam has a live storage capacity of 4.58 MAF (million acres feet), which means it can store water equal to one ft water spread over 45.8 lakh acres, and

Pong Dam 27 ft short of filling to the brim

The water level in the Pong dam built over Beas on Tuesday was recorded to 1,362 ft ( the maximum level is 1,390 ft. The dam, according to BBMB, is 67% full. It recorded an inflow of 87,086 cusecs on Tuesday.

Ranjit Sagar Dam almost full

Ranjit Sagar Dam, built over Ravi, is short of 5.6 meters to fill to the brim. The reservoir which has a filling capacity of 1.79 MAF has already accumulated 1.45 MAF of water. According to a PSPCL official the power generating houses are running full capacity and to balance the storage in reservoir 20,000 cusecs water is released on daily basis.