Srisailam Dam gates opened as Krishna floodwaters rise

Four crest gates of Srisailam Dam were opened to release floodwaters, marking the first release of the season. Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu attended the event and performed Jala Harathi. The dam is nearing full capacity with strong inflows

Hyderabad: Four crest gates of the Srisailam Dam—gates 6, 7, 8, and 11—were lifted on Tuesday to release floodwaters downstream, marking the season’s first gate opening. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu took part in the ceremonial event and performed the traditional Jala Harathi ritual to honour the river goddess.

With heavy inflows from upstream projects, the dam is nearing its full capacity. The Srisailam project, located on the Andhra Pradesh–Telangana border, is currently holding around 200 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water, close to its gross storage capacity of 215.81 TMC.

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As of Tuesday, the reservoir was receiving over 1.53 lakh cusecs of inflow, mainly from the Jurala project in Telangana and the Tungabhadra River in Karnataka. Before the gates were opened, outflows stood at 82,000 cusecs. Additional releases are now being managed through the spillway and powerhouses.

The water level at the reservoir was reported at 881.6 feet, just short of its full reservoir level (FRL) of 885 feet.

Naidu, who flew to Sundipenta by helicopter from Amaravati, visited the Sri Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Swamy temple before heading to the dam for the Jala Harathi. Speaking on the occasion, he expressed optimism about the season’s agricultural prospects.

“The Krishna River is the lifeline of our States, and these inflows bring hope to farmers. With the release of water from Srisailam, I am confident that the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam will also receive sufficient inflows to support irrigation and drinking water needs,” he said.

Naidu also interacted with farmers from Telangana who attended the event.

The Srisailam Dam, a joint project of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, is operated under the control of the Andhra Pradesh administration. The Krishna River basin is witnessing strong inflows due to early monsoon rains in the upper catchment areas of Maharashtra and Karnataka.