Pune: All major dams in Pune district continued discharging water on Tuesday as steady rainfall persisted in their catchment areas over the past 24 hours. Combined storage across the four dams in the Khadakwasla circle has reached 99.94%, with Temghar the only reservoir not yet at full capacity.Among the major reservoirs, Mulshi, Pavana and Temghar recorded more than 100mm of rainfall each during the 24-hour period ending Tuesday morning. Varasgaon and Panshet received around 50mm of rainfall each. The water release from the Khadakwasla dam into the Mutha river was maintained at 18,000 cusec.Officials from the irrigation department said Temghar dam’s live storage reached 99.54% on Tuesday evening and was expected to attain full capacity on Wednesday, provided rainfall continued overnight. “Once Temghar fills up, controlled water release will begin. Water released from Temghar flows into Khadakwasla, which is already receiving inflows from Panshet and Varasgaon. Teams at Khadakwasla have been deployed in three shifts to closely monitor inflows. The dam is also receiving water from its own catchment areas,” an irrigation department official said.Given the near-full storage levels across the reservoir system, the department has asked Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to continue issuing flood alerts for low-lying areas along the Mutha river. “Since all dams are either full or nearly full, sudden increase in discharge following intense rainfall cannot be ruled out,” the official said.Meanwhile, large-scale release continued from downstream reservoirs as well. The discharge from Ujani dam was increased to 80,000 cusec on Tuesday evening, while releases from Veer, Ghod and other reservoirs were maintained at elevated levels. Veer dam was releasing water at 13,000 cusec and Ghod dam at 30,000 cusec.
