K’taka CM DK Shivakumar to inaugurate Tungabhadra Dam’s new gates on June 25

Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar will inaugurate the newly installed 33 spillway gates of the Tungabhadra Dam on June 25 in Koppal district. The event will also see the participation of Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil and the Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar will on June 25 inaugurate the newly installed 33 spillway gates of Tungabhadra Dam, official sources said on Wednesday.

Union Minister for Jal Shakti C R Patil, Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana N Chandrababu Naidu and A Revanth Reddy, respectively, are also likely to be present at the inaugural to be held at the Government High School Ground in Munirabad taluk of Koppal district.

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Several Ministers, public representatives and officials from the three states are also likely to take part in the event, which is being jointly organised by the Water Resources Department and the Tungabhadra Board.

“When the 19th gate of the Tungabhadra Reservoir was washed away (in 2024), we installed a new gate within just six days, preventing water loss from the reservoir and safeguarding the interests of farmers. Having resolved then that such an incident should never happen again, we have now installed new gates for all 33 gates of the dam,” Shivakumar posted on ‘X’.

Noting that he will inaugurate the new gates along with the union minister and CMs of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, he said, “The Tungabhadra Reservoir, which provides water to the lands of lakhs of farmers and supplies life-giving water to crores of people, is a valuable legacy handed down to us.”

“It is our responsibility to maintain it properly and ensure that future generations also benefit from it. We have carried out this work with the utmost dedication.”

One of the crest gates (19th gate) of the reservoir in Koppal district was washed away after its chain link snapped in August 2024, following which the downstream areas were put on alert as a huge quantity of water was being released.

The incident happened amid heavy inflows during the Monsoon season.

Subsequently, based on the recommendations of experts, all 33 gates were replaced, according to official sources.

Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy had recently said that the installation of state-of-the-art new crest gates, designed to last for the next 55 to 60 years, has been completed very successfully at a cost of approximately Rs 51 crore.

The Tungabhadra Dam command area spans across regions of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. It supports vital agricultural and livelihood needs, relying on the Tungabhadra River’s water.