SALEM: For the first time in five months, the level at the Mettur dam crossed the 100-ft mark on Monday.Over the past five days, the dam recorded a heavy inflow owing to the incessant downpour in the upper catchment areas. On Sunday, the reservoir received an inflow of 42,000 cusecs. This caused the level to shoot up from the 97.5 ft recorded on Saturday and cross the 100 ft-mark around noon on Monday. Meanwhile, PWD officials celebrated the occasion by conducting a special pooja.On June 6, six days ahead of schedule, the dam was opened for irrigation. The water level stood at 116 ft when the dam was opened.Meanwhile, after a quantum of 1.5 TMC was subsequently discharged for irrigation purposes to the Cauvery Delta, the level fell below the 100 ft mark on June 30. The prospect of increased storage levels remained bleak due to the failure of the South West monsoon. However, thanks to a strong North East monsoon, the State has been experiencing bountiful rains.The Mettur dam received copious inflows due to the rains in its own cathchments, while Karnataka also released water from the Krishnaraja Sagar dam.However, while an inflow of 38,372 cusecs was recorded on Sunday evening, the figure reduced considerably and stood at 28,371 cusecs on Monday. As of Monday, the water level at the dam stood at 101 ft and 1,172 cusecs was discharged. Meanwhile, the storage level stood at 66.14 TMC as against its full capacity of 93.5 TMC.
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