Koraput: The water level in Kolab reservoir has risen sharply by 1.56 metres in just three days due to the incessant rain. The reservoir’s water level that stood at 853.11 metres at 8 am on Sept 22 rose to 854.67 metres by 8 am on Friday, according to the data from the Upper Kolab head works division.The live storage increased from 509.52 million cubic metres (54.49%) to 626.305 MCM (66.98%) during the period. Despite the improvement, officials said the reservoir remains below its full reservoir level (FRL) of 858 metres.Junior engineer of Upper Kolab irrigation project (UKIP) Ram Kishore Behera said, “If the rainfall continues, we expect the storage to increase further.” The inflow into the reservoir increased dramatically from 44.05 cubic metres per second (cumec) on Sept 22 to 874.547 cumec on Friday. The reservoir received 125 mm of rainfall in the 24 hours preceding Friday morning, taking the cumulative rainfall to 1,242 mm.The rise has also narrowed the gap with last year’s water level, though the reservoir is still below the corresponding level of 856.36 metres recorded on Sept 25 last year. The live storage was 779.751 MCM, or 83.39% of capacity, on the same day last year.In-charge superintendent engineer of Upper Kolab Head Works division Sambhu Prasad Sahu said rainfall improved the reservoir position considerably. The improved storage is expected to boost irrigation prospects and support hydropower generation. Upper Kolab irrigation system caters to around 42,500 hectares during the kharif season and another 25,000 hectares during rabi.The reservoir also recorded a substantial increase in power generation as the water availability improved. Average generation rose from 47.79 MW on Sept 22 to 78.17 MW on Sept 24, though generation dropped to 8.42 MW on Friday.
