SAMBALPUR: The Hirakud Dam authorities released the season’s first floodwater through 10 sluice gates on Thursday.
The first gate was opened at 11.15 am. Subsequently, three more gates were opened. By evening, water was being released through 10 sluice gates, seven on the left spillway and three on the right spillway in addition to the regular discharge through the power channel and canals.
Official sources said the released water is expected to take around 48 hours to reach Mundali in Cuttack district. The administration of 13 districts located downstream of the dam and departments concerned have been directed to remain on alert.
At 6 pm on Thursday, the water level of Hirakud Dam stood at 615.21 ft against the full reservoir level of 630 ft. Similarly, the inflow of water into the reservoir was 93,665 cusec, while the outflow from the dam was 1,50,870 cusec, including 1,21,853 cusec through the spillway, 25,440 cusec through power channel, 3,330 cusec to canals and 247 cusec for industrial use.
Chief engineer of Hirakud Dam Pratap Chandra Choudhury said floodwater is being released in a phased and regulated manner after assessing reservoir inflows and downstream river conditions. There is no cause for panic as all standard operating procedures are being followed, and people living along Mahanadi river have already been alerted, he added.
Ahead of the first floodwater release, Odisha and Chhattisgarh held an inter-state flood coordination meeting in Burla on Wednesday under the supervision of the Central Water Commission (CWC). The two states agreed to strengthen real-time data sharing.
The meeting also reviewed the proposal to relocate two upstream gauge stations in Chhattisgarh, which are crucial for accurately assessing inflows into the Hirakud reservoir.
Officials said the enhanced coordination is expected to improve flood forecasting and ensure smoother regulation of water releases during the monsoon.
“As the season’s first floodwater release from Hirakud Dam begins, this coordination assumes great significance. The objective is to ensure better regulation of upstream inflows and coordinated water releases from the Ravishankar Dam to Naraj through continuous sharing of hydrological data between Odisha and Chhattisgarh,” said Choudhury.
As part of security arrangements, the Sambalpur administration had declared Hirakud Dam and its peripheral areas a no-flying zone prohibiting operation of drones, microlight aircraft and all other unmanned or manned aerial devices without prior approval of the district magistrate.
