Unpleasant Situation: Water level in Punjab dams down than last year
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in News/ July 6,2024
The filling season at major dams in the region commenced on May 20 , with the snow melting in the higher reaches . The water level in Bhakra Dam, Ranjit Sagar Dam and Pong reservoirs are important for irrigation and power generation requirements of the region.
As per reports, the present level at Bhakra Dam reservoir as on July 4, 2024 is almost 8 percent less against last year’s level. At Bhakra Dam that lies on river Sutlej , the water level is 1591.62 feet against the last year level of 1599.69 feet. This is about 8 feet down than the water level on the corresponding day last year. The upper limit of filling of Bhakra reservoir is 1680 feet. As per daily report the Bhakra inflow has increased to 47180 cusecs while it was 41725 cusecs last year.
At Ranjit Sagar Dam which has a capacity of 600 MW, the water level as on July 4,2024 is 11 percent down against last year. The water level at Ranjit Sagar Dam that lies on the river Ravi is 501.87 meters against the last year level of 512.37 meters. The maximum permissible level of the Dam is 540 meters. The water inflow on July 4 was 11108 cusecs while it was 19370 cusecs on last year’s corresponding day.
The current storage at Pong Dam as on July 4,2024 at 1307.78 feet is 29.17 feet lower than last year’s level of 1336.95 feet on the corresponding day. Pong Dam lies on river Beas , having capacity of 1390 feet. The water inflow on July 4 was 24628 cusecs while it was 15872 cusecs on last year’s corresponding day.
Unpleasant Situation: Water level in Punjab dams down than last year. The outflow from Bhakra Dam on July 4 2024 was 31774 cusec against 24790 cusec last year same day. Similarly, in Ranjit Sagar Dam on July 4 2024 water discharge from the dam was 6745 cusec against 14766 cusec last year same day. In Pong Dam on July 4 2024 water discharge from the dam was 9010 cusec against 16501 cusec last year same day.
Diminished storage capacity results in decreased ability to produce hydroelectric power, reduced availability of water for irrigation.
The three dams (Bhakra Dam, Ranjit Sagar Dam and Pong reservoirs) have a combined irrigation potential of 1,024 thousand hectares and an installed hydro power generation capacity of 2,375 MW.
