Under the Telugu Ganga project deal, the supply from Krishna began in September 2008 and lasted till April 1, 2009. It resumed on September 18 and continued till December 12. The total received was 4,000 mcft.
At the peak of the Telangana movement, waters from the river Krishna to Chennai was stopped and the storage levels fell in the four reservoirs that the river feeds. As of last Friday, the combined water levels in the four reservoirs was 6,866 million cubic feet (mcft). In Poondi, the level was 1,572 mcft against a capacity of 3,231 mcft. In Chembarambakkam it was 2289 mcft against the capacity of 3645 mcft, in Red Hills it was 2,318 mcft against the capacity of 3,300 mcft while in Cholavaram it was 687 mcft against the capacity of 881 mcft.
In December 2009, the combined level had gone up to 7,545 mcft from 6,040 mcft in November that year. “That was because there were rains in November besides there was also Krishna water supply. But on December 12, Krishna water stopped because of the Telangana agitation and so did the rains. Hence the levels have gone down,” said an official of the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB).
But last Saturday with the situation in AP getting less volatile, the flow of water was resumed. The CMWSSB got about 400 cusecs of water which was reflected in the storage levels in the reservoirs going up by Monday, nearly 72 hours after water was released to make its journey to the reservoirs. The water flow is expected to continue till April.
Kabaddi for a Braveheart
When you switch parties, you not only switch allegiances to a new leader, you also switch the game of kabbadi, that you have patronized, to another date. That’s what Anitha Radhakrishan, the newly minted DMK MLA from Tiruchendur did. While other DMK cadre pulled out all stops and gave gold, flowers, shawls, dry fruits, posters with sycophantic messages to mark the anja nenjar (Braveheart) a k a M K Azhagiri’s 59th birthday at Madurai on January 30, Anitha Radhakrishan held his annual kabaddi tournament as his birthday gift for the man who orchestrated the defection. For the last ten years, Radhakrishnan, himself a kabaddi player since his schooldays, had held the tournament on February 17, AIADMK chief J Jayalalitha’s birthday. Radhakrishnan had slithered up the ranks fast and was even the AIADMK’s Thoothukudu district secretary and was made a minister within three years of joining the AIADMK.
But this year, 94 teams from across Thoothukudi district played for the M K Azhagiri cup at Tiruchendur. He may have switched parties but certainly has not changed his tactics to please the leader or for that matter, his constituents. A local AIADMK leader griped that Radhakrishan was more focused on promoting his politics than the sport. But clearly that’s a case of sour grapes because the youth in Thoothkudi are very gung ho about Radhakrishnan because he not only promotes kabaddi but even distributed cricket kits to the youth in his capacity as president of the Thoothukudi district amateur cricket association.