Belagavi: The twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad are unlikely to face drinking water shortage this year thanks to the good quantity of rain in the Malaprabha river basin. The Navilatirtha Dam , also called as Renuka Sagar, and built across Malaprabha at Navilteertha near Saudatti, is filling up and can reach full reservoir level (FRL) this year.This dam, constructed between two natural rocks in the year 1973, has a storage capacity of 37.7 TMC feet. However, in the past 45 years, the dam has become full only during a few years. According to officials, the last time the dam had reached FRL was in 2012. After that, storage levels have not crossed the 25 TMC feet till now.However good pre-monsoon and consistent rains in the beginning of monsoon have started yielding results.As on July 12, storage in the dam was gross 7.667 TMC feet, while on the same date last year, it was about 3.96 TMC feet. With an inflow of 2,122 cusecs every day, officials hope that the dam will get filled this year. Outflow from the dam has been maintained at 1,138 cusecs.The possibility of the dam getting full has brought smiles on the faces of farmers of Hubballi-Dharwad, Saudatti, Rhon and Ramadurg. The twin cities, which were getting drinking water once in eight days in the summer last year, won’t have to face such bleak prospects this time.However farmers in Saudatti taluk are complaining that de-silting has not been taken up at the reservoir in the past decade due to which the quantity of water in the reservoir the water will be less.A farmer said dead storage at Navilatirtha dam is 2.5 tmc feet, which means this quantity of water cannot be used. “The amount of silt has increased over the years. We can understand that government has to spend a lot on de-silting. But there are many farmers in the belt who can themselves de-silt and take the silt soil to their farms. This will help the government reduce costs while the dam will also be cleaned,” he added.An official at Navilatirtha dam said he was hopeful about the reservoir reaching FRL level as there has been good rain fall in the Malaprabha basin in Khanapur and Bailhongal taluks. “Apart from drinking purposes, about 2 lakh hectares of agriculture land will be irrigated from the reservoir. The proposal of de-silting the reservoir has been brought to the notice of the government and measures will be taken as per the instructions,” he said.

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