Chennai, Oct 19:
Heavy rainfall over Chennai and its surrounding catchment areas has increased inflow into the reservoirs supplying drinking water to the city, offering some relief as the northeast monsoon gains strength.
The combined storage in Chennaiâs five principal reservoirs â Poondi, Red Hills (Puzhal), Cholavaram, Chembarambakkam and Kannankottai-Thervoykandigai â rose by 237 million cubic feet (mcft) in two days, from 3,949 mcft on October 16 to 4,186 mcft on October 18, according to Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board data. However, the combined storage remained at just 35.6% of the reservoirsâ total capacity of 11,757 mcft.
Red Hills recorded the largest increase, with its storage rising by 111 mcft in a day to 2,037 mcft. The reservoir received an inflow of 1,485 cusecs, while its outflow stood at 196 cusecs. Poondi and Chembarambakkam each recorded an increase of 39 mcft, taking their storage levels to 397 mcft and 1,390 mcft, respectively. Cholavaramâs storage increased by 8 mcft to 130 mcft, while Kannankottai-Thervoykandigai remained unchanged at 232 mcft.
Despite the recent improvement, storage levels remain uneven across the reservoirs. Poondi and Cholavaram were holding only 12.29% and 12.03% of their respective capacities, while Red Hills was at 61.73%. Sustained rainfall in the catchment areas will be crucial to replenishing the water sources and strengthening Chennaiâs drinking water security in the coming months.