Mettur Dam to Stay Closed for Delta Irrigation on June 12

Mettur Dam will not release water for delta irrigation on June 12 this year due to insufficient water levels, officials confirmed on Thursday. The Stanley Reservoir, which typically begins releasing water on this date annually, will remain closed as the water level has fallen below 80 feet and catchment areas have seen poor rainfall.

The Water Resources Department stated that the dam's water level was at 79.62 feet on Thursday, significantly below its full capacity of 120 feet. Storage stood at 41.57 TMC, far short of the reservoir's total capacity of 93.47 TMC. Inflow into the dam had also dropped to 424 cusecs from 528 cusecs earlier in the week. Despite this, the discharge of 1,000 cusecs for drinking water into the Cauvery River will continue.

The Tamil Nadu government will monitor rainfall in the coming days and reassess the situation. If heavy rains occur, the possibility of releasing water for irrigation will be reconsidered.

This is not the first time the June 12 release date has been missed. In the dam’s 93-year history, water has been released on schedule only 20 times. On 11 occasions, water was released earlier, while the release was delayed 61 times. This year marks the 62nd delay.

The delay is likely to affect farmers in the Cauvery delta region, who depend on water from the Mettur Dam for irrigation. The government’s decision will be closely watched as it could impact agricultural activities in the state.