Pong Dam level rises by 2 ft after fresh rain in Himachal, stays above danger mark

The Pong Dam water level that was already a few inches above the danger mark for the past some days rose by nearly two feet on Monday following heavy rainfall in the Beas catchment areas in Himachal Pradesh.

According to data released by the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB), the water level in the dam rose to 1,392.48 feet this morning.

The swollen river had wreaked havoc in over 100 villages in Kapurthala, submerging crops on thousands of acres and damaging property worth hundreds of crores over the past one month. The BBMB operates the Pong and Bhakra dams. The data revealed that the water inflow at the dam was recorded at 64,964 cusecs, far more than 49,899 cusecs released from it on Monday morning.

This year, the Pong Dam witnessed unprecedented inflow during the August-September period, touching 2.25 lakh cusecs, with the outflow being maintained at 1 lakh cusecs for several days to discharge excess water. The Pong Dam is located in the Shivalik foothills in Kangra district of Himachal.

After originating near Rohtang Pass, the Beas flows through Kullu, Mandi and Kangra districts before entering Punjab. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the rainfall has been in excess by 566 per cent in Mandi and by 207 per cent in Kangra during the past 24 hours.

In Kullu, however, it has been deficient by 36 per cent. Over the past week, the rainfall in Mandi and Kangra was above normal by 285 per cent and 128 per cent, respectively, while the overall rainfall across the state was above normal by 20 per cent. The seasonal surplus for Himachal since June 1 is 44 per cent so far.

At Bhakra Dam, which is located on the Sutlej in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh, the water level was 1676.16 feet on Monday morning, almost four feet below the danger mark. The inflow into the reservoir was 40,999 and the outflow at 55,000 cusecs, according to the BBMB.

The Sutlej flows through Kinnaur, Shimla, Kullu, Mandi and Bilaspur of Himachal Pradesh, where rainfall during the past week has been below normal, except for Mandi, according to the IMD.

The weather department has predicted isolated to scattered rain across Himachal Pradesh till September 21, with fairly widespread rain and thunderstorm expected on September 16, for which a yellow alert has been issued.

In Punjab, where monsoon has been surplus by 50 per cent so far, light to moderate rain with spells of heavy rainfall occurred at isolated places over the past 24 hours. The IMD has predicted that light to moderate rain is likely to occur at some places till September 19, with dry weather thereafter.