Another threat has come to the Tungabhadra Dam, a combined water project of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The total 33 gates of this reservoir have been facing technical faults for some years now. According to the latest details revealed by engineers, seven gates are still not working, raising concerns about the safety of the reservoir.
Gate number 19 of the Tungabhadra dam was recently repaired. However, this gate was washed away by the flood on August 10 last year. Since then, a temporary stop-log gate has been installed and work is being carried out.
However, now it is leaking, which is a serious concern. A new 49-ton steel gate was made to replace Gate number 19 at Adivasi Somapura near Gadag and was brought to the site by the end of June 2025.
However, due to high water levels during the current monsoon season, the installation of this gate was postponed to November this year. Meanwhile, six other crest gates have lost up to 90 percent of their structural strength. Out of these 33 gates, 18 gates need to be replaced urgently. The authorities have decided to complete the construction and repair work of all the gates by June next year.
Due to flood water, crest gates numbered 4, 6, 11, 18, 20, 24, and 27 installed in the dam have been damaged. Currently, these gates are kept open by four feet. As the dam is inundated, it is not possible to raise these crest gates further to release more water. On the other hand, these gates have bowed at the bottom due to the flood.
Karnataka Minister Shivraj Thangadigi said that the Dam Safety Authority has given a report on this. The government has called for a tender for the manufacture of new gates at a cost of Rs. 60 crore. Keeping safety in mind, the officials have decided not to store more than 80 TMC of water in the dam.
This season, 135 TMC of water has already been released from the project. Also, 24 TMC of water has been used. Presently, the inflow is 23,295 cusecs. The outflow is 23,193 cusecs. There is concern among the farmers in the catchment area due to the damage to these gates.