Bhubaneswar, July 9: The Hirakud Reservoir authorities on Thursday released the season's first floodwater by opening 10 sluice gates, following a steady rise in the reservoir's water level due to continuous inflows from the upper catchment areas. The controlled release is aimed at effective flood management and ensuring the structural safety of the dam.

The annual release of floodwater began after a traditional puja ceremony held after 11 am. Following long-standing custom, Gate No. 7 on the Hirakud side was opened first. Initially, four gates—three on the left spillway and one on the right—were opened. As inflows increased during the day, authorities opened six more gates in the afternoon, taking the total number of operational sluice gates to ten.

According to official data recorded at 3 pm, the reservoir's water level stood at 624.93 feet, against its Full Reservoir Level (FRL) of 630 feet. The dam was receiving an inflow of 1,74,181 cusecs, while the total outflow was 88,372 cusecs. Of this, 59,314 cusecs was discharged through the spillway, 25,481 cusecs through the power channel, 247 cusecs was supplied to industries and 3,330 cusecs was released through the canal system.

Officials said the released water would take around 12 to 16 hours to reach Khairmal and Barmul, and 36 to 48 hours to reach Munduli. The Chief Engineer of the Mahanadi Basin has advised residents living along the Mahanadi and its tributaries downstream to remain vigilant, avoid entering river waters and follow official advisories until the river levels return to normal.

Powered by Froala Editor