KRS dam fills to capacity for first time in history; CM Siddaramaiah to offer 'Bagina' on June 30

For the first time in history, Karnataka's KRS dam has filled to capacity in June due to heavy rains. CM Siddaramaiah will offer Bagina on June 30. This marks a historic milestone in Cauvery basin water management and rituals.

Mandya: Due to heavy rainfall in the Cauvery catchment area, the Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) dam has filled to capacity in the month of June, a historic first. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will offer ‘Bagina’ at the reservoir on June 30.

Water levels reach 121 feet; heavy inflow continues

The dam currently holds water at 121 feet, with an inflow of 52,829 cusecs and an outflow of 51,110 cusecs. The reservoir has reached a storage level of 35.943 TMC.

First time a CM will offer ‘Bagina’ in June 

This is the first time in Karnataka’s history that a Chief Minister will offer Bagina to a full KRS reservoir in June. Previously, the earliest such occasion occurred on August 7, 2014, when Siddaramaiah offered Bagina with the water level at 124 feet. This will be Siddaramaiah’s third time offering Bagina at the KRS.

He last performed the ritual on July 29, 2024. Despite being Chief Minister between 2015 and 2017, he did not have the opportunity to offer Bagina as the reservoir did not fill during those years due to poor rainfall.

Historic comparison of June water levels at KRS 

The KRS dam reached 121.45 feet on June 21, 1941, which was the previous record for the month. On that day, the reservoir had an inflow of 3,389 cusecs and an outflow of 7,093 cusecs, holding 44.812 TMC of water.

Over the decades, the reservoir has crossed the 100-feet mark in June on 16 occasions. Notable years include:

• 103.83 feet (1954)
• 103.99 feet (1957)
• 100.85 feet (1961)
•  101.05 feet (1962)
• 110.25 feet (1973)
•  104.56 feet (1976)
•  107.57 feet (1978)
•  106.80 (1980)
•   109.10 feet (1984)
• 106.30 feet (2022)
• 118.60 feet (June 21, 2025)

However, never before has the dam reached full capacity in June until now.

CM Siddaramaiah to offer Bagina on June 30

Agriculture and District In-charge Minister N Chaluvarayaswamy confirmed that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will visit KRS on June 30 at 10:30 AM to offer prayers to Goddess Cauvery and perform the Bagina ceremony.

Officials instructed to ensure flawless arrangements 

At a meeting held at the District Collector’s office, Chaluvarayaswamy instructed officials to make comprehensive arrangements for the event,  including stage setup, public seating, and security.

Attending the meeting were MLAs Ramesh Bandisiddegowda and P Ravikumar, District Collector Dr Kumar, ZP CEO KR Nandini, Additional Deputy Commissioner BC Shivanandamurthy, Additional SP EC Thimmayya, and KRS Superintending Engineer Raghuram, among others.