Now TB water is not released for irrigation of Kharif crops

A KNNL release said the Tungabhadra Dam at Hosapete did not receive sufficient inflow due to the prevailing rainfall deficit. | Photo credit: FILE PHOTO

The state government has decided not to release water from the Tungabhadra reservoir to the right and left bank canals during the ongoing kharif season due to insufficient storage caused by insufficient rainfall in the reservoir basin.

In a notice issued on Thursday, superintending Engineer, Karnataka Neeravari Nigam Limited (KNNL), Tungabhadra Project Circle, Munirabad, SB Malligawad, who is the member-secretary of the Tungabhadra Project Irrigation Advisory Committee and Vijayanagara Canals, said that the reservoir did not get sufficient inflow due to rains.

As a result, water cannot be released through the canal network for irrigation during the current monsoon season, he said.

As per the state government order, the water available in the reservoir will be reserved exclusively for drinking purposes.

The department has appealed to farmers in the Tungabhadra command area to cooperate with the authorities in view of the prevailing water scarcity.

It said that if sufficient rainfall falls in the region in the coming days and the reservoir fills sufficiently, the Irrigation Advisory Committee will meet to review the storage site and take a decision on releasing water for agricultural purposes.

Insufficient storage space

The decision comes at a time when farmers across the Tungabhadra command area are waiting for irrigation water for the kharif season amid delayed and deficient monsoon rains.

According to the latest data released by the Tungabhadra dam authorities on Thursday, the reservoir held only 9,313 tmcft of water against its full storage capacity of 105,788 tmcft, with the water level at 1,587.83 ft against the full reservoir level (FRL) of 1,633 ft.

The reservoir has not seen any inflow during the previous 24 hours that ended at 8 am on Thursday, with an average of 176 cusecs being released through the canal system.

In contrast, on the corresponding day last year, the reservoir held 77,144 tmcft of water and received an inflow of 32,767 cusecs.

The announcement assumes significance as it comes barely days after the successful completion of replacement of all 33 ridge gates of the dam, a major engineering exercise that was carried out after one of the original gates collapsed during the 2024 monsoon.

The new gate restored the reservoir to its designed storage capacity and substantially increased the safety and reliability of the decades-old structure.

Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil, Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy jointly inaugurated the newly installed ridge gates recently.

However, despite the upgraded infrastructure, the reservoir continues to await significant monsoon inflows, with irrigation remaining dependent on significant improvement in rainfall in the Tungabhadra basin.

Published – 02 Jul 2026 21:26 IST