Chandigarh, September 4: With water levels in the Bhakra and Pong dams nearing their capped storage limits, the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) on Wednesday announced a further release of water into Punjab rivers, prompting evacuation advisories in low-lying areas.
Officials said outflows from Bhakra Dam would be raised from 75,000 cusecs to 85,000 cusecs this afternoon, following an early morning inflow of 95,435 cusecs. The dam’s water level has touched 1,678.97 feet, barely a foot below the prescribed ceiling of 1,680 feet. Although the original storage capacity of Bhakra Dam is 1,985 feet, authorities capped it at 1,680 feet after the devastating floods of 1988.
“Given the current inflows and the dam reaching optimum storage, we have informed the Ropar administration that outflows will be increased to 85,000 cusecs today,” BBMB officials said. Of this, nearly 70,000 cusecs will flow into the natural Sutlej riverbed, while around 15,000 cusecs will be diverted through the Nangal and Anandpur Sahib hydel canals.
At the same time, Pong Dam is already breaching its safety threshold. Its level reached 1,394.51 feet, more than four feet above the capped limit of 1,390 feet. Current inflows at Pong stand at 132,595 cusecs, while BBMB has restricted outflows to 91,167 cusecs. The Pong reservoir too had a higher storage capacity of 1,400 feet before 1988, but was later capped at 1,390 feet following the same flood disaster.
The rising levels have prompted district authorities to sound alerts in vulnerable areas. Ropar Deputy Commissioner Varjeet Singh Walia said residents of low-lying habitations along the Sutlej basin in Nangal and Anandpur Sahib subdivisions have been advised to shift to safer ground.
“NDRF teams have already been deployed in both Anandpur Sahib and Nangal to respond to any emergency situation,” Walia said. He added that the situation downstream from the Ropar headworks remains stable. “The Swan and Sirsa tributaries have shown a decrease in water, so the outflows from Ropar headworks will remain around 1 lakh cusecs. People downstream need not panic, the situation is under control,” he noted.
Authorities continue to monitor both dams closely as inflows remain high during the ongoing monsoon spell.
