RED ALERT In Pune Today As 10 TMC Water Discharged From Three Dams, Water Rises In Mutha River

Over the past fortnight, due to intense rainfall in the upstream regions, considerable volumes of water have had to be discharged from three local dams in our district.

Pune: Over 10 TMC water was discharged from three dams in the Pune district amid heavy rains in catchment areas in recent days. The dams from which the water was discharged are Khadakwasla, Panshet, and Warasgaon. The water discharged from the Khadakwasla cluster has gone into the Ujani dam, where the current stock is at 73.38 percent. Notably, the Khadakwasla cluster includes four dams. The dam catchment areas in the Pune district have been receiving moderate to heavy rainfall since July 15, and in the last two days, including the ghat section, have been experiencing a downpour. The heavy rainfall resulted in a rapid increase in inflow and has raised the dam water level.

#WATCH | Maharashtra: Water level of Mutha River rises due to incessant rainfall in parts of Pune pic.twitter.com/kRttFpnpN1

— ANI (@ANI) August 4, 2024

Pune on Red Alert: Water Release From Dams

According to the irrigation department, the release of water began from Khadakwasla dam after its water stock reached 95 percent on July 24. Since then the release of water has continued.
Similarly, the water release from Panshet dam began on July 28 and from Warasgaon on August 2.
“We are also communicating about the dam water level conditions with the concerned authorities. We have also issued advisory for residents in low-lying areas, as there is a chance of water level increase in river,” sub-divisional engineer, Mutha canal sub- division, Mohan Bhadane said.

Pune on Red Alert: Heavy Rainfall And Dams Capacity

Over the course of the previous two days, the ghat region in Pune district has been bathed in abundant rainfall, recording over 100mm in various spots within the Maval, Mulshi, Welhe, and Junnar tehsils. Crucial providers of drinking water for East Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad city, the Bhama Askhed and Pavana dams saw their water reserves rise impressively too, standing at 85.15% and 81.36% respectively. Furthermore, there was a dramatic rise in water storage within the dam projects throughout Pune division, reaching 77.59%. This figure indicates a significant improvement compared to this time last year, when water storage levels were at a meagre 63.07%.

Pune on Red Alert: IMD Issued Alert

The India Meteorological Department has raised a severe weather alert for Pune district set for August 4th. There’s a low-pressure weather situation stirred up over Northern Jharkhand and nearby locations, geared towards the northwest. Additionally, a trough at sea level is stretched from South Gujarat up to the Kerala coast. Through these weather course, Maharashtra is bracing for a battering mix of heavy and extremely heavy rains across its Konkan and Central parts, along with moderate to heavy showers for most of Marathwada and Vidarbha’s areas on August 4th.

Adding to this, the IMD has released red alerts for Satara and Palghar districts for the forthcoming 24 hours. The alerts have been raised in anticipation of extreme rainfalls, particularly targeting hilly areas in these districts.

According to officials, Pune district’s rainfall schedule is likely to witness a downtick from August 5th onwards.