Ahmedabad: The Sabarmati Riverfront walkway in Ahmedabad remains open despite the heavy inflow of water into the Sabarmati River, following large-scale release from the Dharoi dam in North Gujarat. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) observed that while over 51,000 cusecs of water is currently flowing through the Sabarmati, the river’s level is still well below the walkway, and is not expected to rise above it at this stage.

The water, though flowing steadily, is safely contained within the river channel. AMC has, however, increased security deployment at the walkway to continuously monitor the situation and to alert visitors. Based on past experiences, the civic body has a clear idea of the discharge level at which the riverfront walkway needs to be shut.

As a precautionary measure, the State government and AMC have issued alerts to downstream areas including Vatva, Vejalpur, Daskroi, and Dholka, asking residents to remain vigilant. At present the downflow from Dharoi is reduced to half (around 32,000 cusecs at noon on Sunday) compared to previous evening (around 65,000 cusecs on Saturday evening). Water discharged from Dharoi dam in river-bed of Sabarmati takes hours to reach Ahmedabad and show impact here.

The government confirmed that 25 gates of the Vasna barrage in Ahmedabad—from gate numbers 5 to 29—have been opened to allow free passage of the rising inflow from the north. At present, 51,126 cusecs of water is being released downstream into the Sabarmati River. Officials warned that with continuous rainfall in the upper catchment areas, including Rajasthan, more water may need to be released.

The heavy release follows an inflow surge into Dharoi dam, which has reached over 86 percent of its storage capacity. At 1 am today, the dam was releasing 64,000 cusecs, against an inflow of 27,210 cusecs, to maintain the prescribed rule level of 188.67 meters before September 1. The dam’s full reservoir level is 189.59 meters. Dharoi is the fourth largest dam in Gujarat after Sardar Sarovar, Ukai, and Kadana, with a designed gross storage capacity of 813.13 MCM.

Authorities emphasized that while the Sabarmati riverfront remains safe for the public at present, the situation is being closely monitored round-the-clock, and timely action will be taken if water levels approach the walkway.

DeshGujarat