Singur dam water levels fall, threatening mugger crocodile habitat

Water levels in Singur dam have dropped sharply to 4.477 TMC, threatening the habitat of hundreds of mugger crocodiles. Officials warn of further decline due to poor inflows, even as emergency pumping continues to supply drinking water to Hyderabad.

Hyderabad: Hundreds of mugger crocodiles in the Singur dam face a serious threat to their habitat with water levels receding amid absence of rainfall in the catchment areas. Concerns were raised that a further fall in water levels here could affect the space used by crocodiles, placing their habitat at risk if rain is not reported in the upstream areas of Karnataka.

As per HMWSSB statement, on June 28, the Singur dam had 4.477 TMC water, against the original capacity of 29.917 TMC and the water level was 1691 ft against its full tank level (FTL) of 1717 ft.

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HMWSSB officials said the trend in water levels had become critical and anticipated that levels at the dam would decline further given the absence of fresh inflows. The Singur Dam reservoir spans approximately 2,000 hectares, has a capacity of nearly 30 TMC, and houses approximately 1,000 to 1,500 mugger crocodiles in the backwaters.

As the water levels recede drastically, mugger crocodiles that used to stay in the dam’s freshwater are likely to face a loss of their natural habitat. If the level in the dam reached dead storage due to a lack of fresh inflows, the survival of the crocodiles may be severely affected, the official said.

In 2015, when the Manjeera dam dried up completely due to scanty rainfall, mugger crocodiles emerged onto nearby agricultural fields, triggering panic among farmers and locals, a water board official said. A similar situation may repeat for the mugger crocodiles in the Singur dam if the monsoon is not favourable, the official added.

Emergency pumping at Singur:

Meanwhile, HMWSSB officials said an emergency pumping arrangement was made a month ago to supply drinking water from Singur dam to meet Hyderabad’s demand. For the past two to three weeks, 67 MGD of water has been drawn to meet the demand of 1.5 lakh consumers in the city and suburbs.

“The water board also supplies Singur water to key defence establishments in Medak and in the city, too. If the rains are not reported in the upstream areas of Karnataka, the water shortage in the city is inevitable,” a senior HMWSSB official said.