ERODE: The discharge of water from the Mettur dam into the Cauvery river was increased to 1.7 lakh cusecs on Wednesday evening as the inflow continued to surge. As a result, 250 people living in low-lying areas along the banks of the river in Namakkal and Erode districts were moved to relief shelters.
The water level reached the full reservoir level of 120 feet (93.4 tmcft) on Tuesday evening, following which the entire inflow was discharged into the river. Water flow in the river at Hogenakkal surged to 1.4 lakh cusecs on Wednesday. A month ago, the water level was a meagre 300 cusecs, which was one of the lowest in the last five years.
As of 7 pm on Wednesday, 1.7 lakh cusecs of water was released into the river. Due to this, a flood warning was issued to the people living along the banks of the Cauvery. In Namakkal, people living in low-lying areas in Kumarapalayam and were accommodated in temporary camps.
In Kumarapalayam, 186 people belonging to 78 families have been taken to two camps. Thirty-seven people belonging to 15 families have been accommodated in a camp in Pallipalayam. Namakkal collector S Uma inspected the river banks and interacted with the people staying in the camps.
In Erode, flooding was reported in residential areas in Bhavani. A total of 28 people belonging to 14 families were accommodated in two camps. Minister S Muthusamy inspected the Cauvery banks. District collector Raja Gopal Sunkara inspected Kodumudi and Bhavani. Speaking to reporters, he said, “Erode district has 30 villages on the banks of Cauvery and 77 shelters are ready as a precaution.”
In Salem, disaster management officials said the situation is under control. Collector R Brinda Devi inspected the river bank on Tuesday night.
(With inputs from Dharmapuri)