Water discharge from Mettur dam for delta irrigation continues after 45 days

Water discharge from the Stanley Reservoir in Mettur for delta irrigation continued beyond the prescribed 45 days here on Thursday (October 15, 2026).

Based on the availability of water in Mettur dam, water is discharged for delta irrigation from the scheduled date of June 12 until January 28, for 230 days. This year, due to the poor availability of water, water was not released on June 12.

On September 1, after 80 days, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay released the water from the dam for delta irrigation. The Water Resources Department (WRD) announced that water would be discharged for 45 days until October 15.

As rain was not recorded at a sufficient level in the catchment areas of Mettur dam and in Karnataka, the water level of the dam did not increase, and reduced quickly due to the discharge. After two years, on Wednesday (October 14, 2026), the dam's water level went below 60 feet.

On Thursday at 6 p.m., the water discharge from the dam was expected to stop. However, the government did not issue an order to do so. Water released for delta irrigation was reduced to 8,000 cusecs from 10,000 cusecs at 8 p.m.

Officials attached to the WRD said that for the next few days, based on the availability of water, the discharge from the dam will reduce further. From September 1 to October 15, Mettur dam received 16.7 tmcft of water and discharged 46 tmcft, including for delta irrigation and drinking water purposes.

From June 12 to October 15, the dam received 42.6 tmcft of water and discharged 57 tmcft.

At present, the dam holds 23.20 tmcft of water. Monthly, if 1,000 cusecs are released for drinking water purposes, 2.50 tmcft of water is required. During the Northeast monsoon, the dam is expected to receive water within a few days. “The government will take a decision, considering all factors, in the next few days,” officials said.

On Thursday, the dam's water level stood at 57.98 feet against its FRL of 120 feet. The storage level stood at 23.20 tmcft compared with its full capacity of 93.47 tmcft. Inflow into the dam reduced to 534 cusecs from 696 cusecs.