The Hirakud Dam in Odisha’s Sambalpur district released the season’s first floodwater on Thursday after authorities opened four sluice gates at 11:00 am. The move comes as the reservoir’s water level continued to rise due to heavy rainfall in the upper catchment areas of the Mahanadi basin. Officials have also announced plans to open six more gates later in the day if required to regulate the increasing inflow.
Reservoir Level Continues to Rise
According to officials, the water level in the Hirakud Reservoir reached 614.65 feet at 6:00 am on Thursday, reflecting the impact of continuous rainfall in upstream regions. The dam is currently receiving an inflow of approximately 1,64,009 cusecs of water per second.
Before the gates were opened, the outflow from the reservoir stood at 27,590 cusecs. Following the release, the discharge into the Mahanadi River increased significantly, with authorities releasing up to 1 lakh cusecs of water to regulate the reservoir level.
Four Gates Opened, More Likely to Follow
Providing details of the operation, Dillip Rout, Senior Engineer of the Water Resources Department, said three sluice gates—Gate Nos. 7, 8 and 9—were opened on the left side of the dam, while Gate No. 46 on the right side was also opened.
He stated that around 64,000 cusecs of water is being released through the opened gates. In addition, approximately 25,000 cusecs is being discharged through the powerhouse, while another 5,000 cusecs is being diverted into irrigation canals.
Overall, the dam is currently releasing about 94,000 cusecs of water. Since the water released into irrigation canals does not flow downstream, nearly 89,000 cusecs is entering the Mahanadi River.
Rout further informed that authorities are planning to open six more sluice gates between 3:00 pm and 4:00 pm, which would increase the total discharge from the dam to nearly 1.8 lakh cusecs, depending on the reservoir level and inflow.
Safety Advisory for Downstream Areas
Ahead of the floodwater release, the district administration and dam authorities issued safety advisories for residents living along the Mahanadi river basin. People have been urged to avoid entering the river for bathing, fishing or other activities and to keep livestock away from the riverbed, as water levels are expected to rise rapidly following the discharge.
Public awareness campaigns have also been conducted across vulnerable downstream areas to ensure that residents remain alert and follow official instructions.
Water Expected to Reach Mundali in 36–48 Hours
According to the Water Resources Department, the released water is expected to take 36 to 48 hours to reach Mundali near Cuttack.
Officials said that as of 11:00 am, around 2,24,000 cusecs of water was already flowing through Mundali. However, they expect the flow to reduce to nearly 50,000 cusecs by the time the water released from Hirakud reaches the barrage, helping minimise the flood risk downstream.
Authorities have assured that the situation is being monitored continuously and that further decisions regarding the opening of additional gates will be taken based on rainfall intensity, reservoir levels and inflow from upstream catchment areas.
