The Hindu 06.08.2014
Krishna water arrives in city
Krishna water, considered a lifeline to maintain the water supply for Chennai, reached the city on Tuesday morning.
Water
released from Kandaleru reservoir, Andhra Pradesh, on August 1 reached
Uthukottai at the Tamil Nadu border at 6 a.m., after travelling over 150
km of Kandaleru Poondi canal. By evening, it travelled another 25 km to
reach Poondi reservoir, where it will be stored and distributed to the
city.
The entry point received about 190 cubic feet
per second. “We expect to get 300 cusecs this week, which is enough to
fulfil the city’s drinking water needs. If we get 500 cusecs daily, we
can store 1,200 mcft (million cubic feet) monthly, and that is adequate
to supply water for more than a month,” said an official of the Water
Resources Department.
As storage in city reservoirs
hit a low of 1,800 mcft, just enough to sustain water supply for two
months, Krishna water was the last resort to avoid a severe shortage.
Officials
of Chennai Metrowater said they would start transferring the water to
Chembarambakkam and Red Hills reservoirs for supply to the city. Nearly
two-thirds of the supply now comes from Veeranam tank and desalination
plants.
By Tuesday evening, it reached Poondi reservoir, where it will be stored and distributed to city.
