Stage set for emergency pumping from Nagarajuna Sagar

The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board has made arrangements well in advance for emergency pumping of water from the project.

Hyderabad: With the water levels touching 509 feet, one feet below the Minimum Draw Down Level in the Nagarjuna Sagar Project, moves are afoot for commencing emergency pumping from the project on Monday.

The pumping operations are being taken up from the critical threshold level to meet the drinking water needs of Hyderabad.

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The existing approach channel would not support drawls from the project with the water level plummeting below the MDDL of 510 ft.

The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board has made arrangements well in advance for emergency pumping of water from the project. Officials said the process of installation of the pumps was in progress.

Two pumps would be put into operation for the purpose immediately and two more would be installed subsequently to augment the drawls. About 800 cusecs were of water was being given from the project for supporting the water supply in Hyderabad.

The government had planned to extract water from the project reaching up to the depth of 500 ft this time.

The River Management Board, which reviewed the situation, at its recent meeting allotted 8.5 tmc of water to the State to meet the drinking water needs during the upcoming summer.

The state would require some 1.6 tmc of water per month to support the supply system in Hyderabad and its adjoining pockets.

The situation is expected to worsen further by May 5 in the absence of any emergency releases from upstream sources. Water levels in the Srisailam project also had fallen below the MDDL of 834 ft.

The officials of the State government are in touch with Karnataka seeking releases from Narayanpur dam. Arrangements were being made for drawing water from the Singur project also.

Emergency pumping from Yellampalli reservoir would be taken up on May 1, they added while exuding confidence the needs of the Mission Bhagiratha would also be met by all means.