🌊 POLAVARAM | SAME GODAVARI, BUT DIFFERENT WATER LEVELS — WHY? “ NATURE IS ALWAYS STRONG “. Flow resistance, channel geometry, velocity changes and hydraulic head losses.
An interesting hydraulic feature can be observed at the Polavaram Project.
The Godavari water level near the Upper Coffer Dam (UCD)/ECRF area has often been slightly higher than the Spillway constructed by @MEIL_Group U/S level, even though both are part of the same river system.
📊 Peak Flood History at Polavaram
🔹 10 Aug 2019
Discharge: 13.95 lakh cusecs
Water Level: 28.60 m
Spillway/UCD works were still under construction.
🔹 18 Aug 2020
Discharge: 22.16 lakh cusecs
Water Level: 30.80 m
🔹 10 Sep 2021
Discharge: 10.04 lakh cusecs
By then, Godavari flows were being diverted towards the Spillway and the UCD had substantially closed the original river course.
🔹 16 Jul 2022
Discharge: 20.92 lakh cusecs
UCD Water Level: 30.80 m
From 2023, the comparison becomes particularly interesting:
📍 27 Jul 2023 — 10.85 lakh cusecs
Spillway U/S: 33.03 m
UCD U/S: 33.81 m
⬆️ Difference: 0.78 m
📍 10 Aug 2024 — 6.52 lakh cusecs
Spillway U/S: 30.95 m
UCD U/S: 31.45 m
⬆️ Difference: 0.50 m
📍 22 Aug 2025 — 11.87 lakh cusecs
Spillway U/S: 33.50 m
UCD U/S: 34.40 m
⬆️ Difference: 0.90 m
📍 2 Aug 2026 — 14.76 lakh cusecs
Spillway U/S: 34.77 m
UCD U/S: 34.78 m
⬆️ Difference: just 0.01 m
🔍 WHY THE DIFFERENCE?
The UCD/ECRF is located across the original Godavari river course, while floodwater is now diverted towards the Spillway through a newly developed diversion/approach river course extending several kilometres.
As huge volumes of water travel from the original river reach towards the Spillway, flow resistance, channel geometry, velocity changes and hydraulic head losses can produce a difference in water-surface elevation between the UCD reach and the Spillway U/S.
Interestingly, during the 2026 peak of 14.76 lakh cusecs, the difference narrowed — 34.78 m vs 34.77 m.
That is Polavaram hydraulics in action: one Godavari, two measuring locations, and a massive engineered diversion carrying the river towards the Spillway.
See clips 1) Water at UCD / river main course 2) Spillway both completed in 2023.
#Polavaram #Godavari #PolavaramProject #GodavariFloods #Spillway #UCD #ECRF #RiverEngineering #Hydraulics #FloodManagement #WaterResources #AndhraPradesh #Engineering #Infrastructure #Cusecs #Meil #MeghaEngineering
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