COIMBATORE: The water level in the Stanley Reservoir in Mettur is inching fast towards its maximum reservoir level of 120 feet. As of Friday morning, the storage level was just one foot short of reaching its full reservoir level (FRL).

“Water level in the dam reached 119.02 feet at 8 am. However, the inflow has dropped from 6000 cusecs to 3,000 cusecs on Wednesday morning. It may go down further due to a water drop realized at Biligundlu, the entry point of River Cauvery into Tamil Nadu, as rains have eased down in catchment areas. So, there is uncertainty as to when the dam will get filled up,” said an official of the Water Resources Department.

On Friday morning, the dam’s storage level stood at a comfortable 91.9 TMC against its full storage of 93.47 TMC. As continuous rains lash the delta region, 1,000 cusecs have been discharged for delta districts and 300 cusecs for canal irrigation.

In case the dam fills up soon, this will be a record third time so far this year. The dam filled up first on 30 July and then on 12 August. In fact, the opening of the dam for delta irrigation missed its customary date of 12 June due to poor storage level.