Pong Dam level remains above danger mark; 84,952 cusecs water discharged today

The water level in Pong Dam continued to remain above the danger mark on Saturday, posing a threat to downstream areas in Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh and many districts of Punjab. 

According to official data, the water level was recorded at 1,391.28 feet at 9 am slightly higher than the permissible limit of 1,390 feet. The dam received an inflow of 1,60,276 cusecs, while the total outflow was 84,952 cusecs. Of this, 17,079 cusecs were released through turbines and 67,873 cusecs through spillways.

Officials of the Kangra district administration said that discharge at the MHC stood at 11,500 cusecs, while 73,452 cusecs was released downstream at the Shah Nehar Barrage (SNB). Six machines were operational at the dam.

Meanwhile, floods continued to affect the Fatehpur and Indora subdivisions of Kangra district, where hundreds of families from over 30 villages and settlements have been evacuated to safer places. Crops spread over hundreds of acres have been damaged, and schools, colleges and the private Arni University remain closed for the past many days.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have been deployed in the affected areas. With dam authorities maintaining high discharge levels, officials have warned that the flood situation could worsen. The Kangra district administration has already sounded an alert.

Heavy rainfall in the Beas river catchment areas of Kangra on Friday night further raised the water levels in the river and its tributaries.