The catchment areas in the district are receiving heavy rainfall every day, and the reservoir is filled to its full capacity for the first time in a non-monsoon month.
Water level in Harangi stands at 2,858.09 ft, against its capacity of 2,859 ft on Friday. / Photo | Express
Madikeri :
For the first time, Kodagu’s Harangi reservoir has filled up to the brim in October. Following increasing inflow to the dam, over 5,000 cusecs of water is being let out to the rivers. The catchment areas in the district are receiving heavy rainfall every day, and the reservoir is filled to its full capacity for the first time in a non-monsoon month.
“In the wake of heavy rainfall in the Harangi basin for the past one week, additional water is being released into the river for the dam’s safety,” said Harangi Irrigation Department Executive Engineer IK Puttaswamy.
He confirmed that the inflow into the dam has been increasing day by day for the last five months. The water level as of Friday stood at 2,858.09 feet against its full capacity of 2,859 feet.
Kodagu district has been facing monsoon showers since May this year, and the district continued to receive heavy rainfall every day. Several parts of the district have already received more than 7,600 mm of rainfall this year. The district recorded 2,998.59 mm of rainfall this year from January.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Karnataka / by Express News Service / October 25th, 2025
More than 95 lakh tourists visited the hilly district of Kodagu during the last two and a half years.
According to information provided by officials of the Tourism Department at a recent meeting of the Kodagu District Tourism Development Committee, the district had recorded 43.69 lakh tourists in 2023 and 45.72 lakh in 2024.
Sharing these numbers, Anita Bhaskar, Deputy Director of Tourism, Madikeri, said that Kodagu accounted for 23 out of the 778 tourist destinations identified under the Karnataka Tourism Policy 2020-26.
The tourist destinations in Kodagu included Raja Seat, Madikeri Fort, Abbey Falls, Mandalpatti, Harangi Reservoir, Mallalli Falls, Iruppu Falls, Dubare, Chikkahole, General Thimmayya Museum, and Nagarhole National Park among others.
A request had been made to shift the Talacauvery-Bhagamandala temples from the list of tourist sites to the list of spiritual destinations, the official said.
A total of 2,300 homestays in Kodagu district had been registered online and certified. This is in addition to the 150 hotels and resorts operational in the district, out of which 53 are officially registered on the Tourism Department’s portal.
Mandalpatti
The scenic peaks of Mandalpatti have been selected for development through Public Private Partnership (PPP) under the One District One Destination scheme.
The Galibeedu Gram Panchayat had approved the infrastructure development at Mandalpatti with an allocation of ₹50 lakh. However, as Mandalpatti falls under the Forest Department, cooperation of the Department has been sought for the repair of roads and other related works, the official said.
Referring to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s announcement on development of water sports and adventure tourism in his Budget speech of 2024-25 , the official said that Harangi reservoir will be open for such activities under Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR), while rafting licenses had been granted for Dubare in Kushalnagar and Barpuhole in Ponnampet.
Ms. Bhaskar said that the Tourism Department had sought approval from the Lake Development Authority to float tenders for rafting, kayaking, canoeing, wind surfing, jet skiing, and water zorbing at Honnamana Kere, a tourist destination in Somwarpet taluk of Kodagu district, which already has attractions like hills and caves.
Children’s mini train
Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Kodagu Venkat Raja, who presided over the meeting, said steps will be taken to start a children’s mini train at Raja Seat after receiving a report from the engineers of South Western Railways.
He said that engineers from the Railways had already inspected the site and gathered details with regard to the proposal to start a children’s mini train.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> India> Karnataka / by The Hindu Bureau / July 31st, 2025
Torrential rains continued to lash Kodagu district, triggering landslides, overflowing rivers, and widespread panic among residents. The worst affected is the Shaktinagar area near Madikeri, where more than 60 families have been forced to vacate their homes due to fear of landslides.
The relentless downpour has caused rivers, streams, and rivulets across the district to swell beyond danger levels. In Shaktinagar of Mekeri village, located on a vulnerable hill slope, the threat of soil erosion has left residents in deep anxiety. Authorities have covered the vulnerable area with tarpaulin sheets in an attempt to prevent further damage.
District officials have stepped up vigilance across Kodagu as the current weather situation draws parallels to the devastating floods of 2018. Powerful winds accompanying the rain have uprooted hundreds of trees and electric poles, further worsening the situation.
In a related incident, a massive tree fell on a moving car in Bajegundi village, Somwarpet taluk. The driver, Charan, had a miraculous escape with no injuries reported.
Meanwhile, water has been discharged from the Harangi reservoir into the Harangi and Cauvery rivers, which are now flowing dangerously over their banks. In Kushalnagar taluk’s Hudugur area, coffee plantations and paddy fields have already been submerged, and fears are growing that homes in low-lying areas could soon be inundated.
Several roads across the district have been affected. A large tree fell across the Madikeri–Somwarpet highway, bringing traffic to a standstill for over an hour. In Ponampet taluk, many low-lying areas are submerged, and the Balyamandur–Harihara road has been rendered impassable.
The district administration, along with the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), has been placed on high alert, closely monitoring the situation. Residents have been advised to avoid unnecessary travel and to remain vigilant as rain and strong winds are expected to continue.
source: http://www.daijiworld.com / Daijiworld.com / Home> Karnataka / by Daijiworld Media Network – Kodagu / July 27th, 2025
And there is no respite from inclement weather as the IMD has forecast heavy showers for next two days and sounded red alert for three coastal districts and as many Malnad districts.
Scores of visitors flock to Abbey Falls in Kodagu district following heavy rain. Credit: Dh photo
Heavy rain continued unabated, damaging houses, roads and power infrastructure and triggering flash floods in coastal districts and Malnad region.
And there is no respite from inclement weather as the IMD has forecast heavy showers for next two days and sounded red alert for three coastal districts and as many Malnad districts.
Two people died in rain-related incidents in Dakshina Kannada. Lily D’Souza (52), a native of Iruvailu near Moodbidri, was electrocuted when she stepped on to an electric wire snapped due to gusty winds, near her house on Wednesday morning.
Suryanarayan (49), a professional photographer from Kasargod, died after his car plunged into an overflowing stormwater drain at Kodikal in Mangaluru.
Three people travelling in a car escaped with minor injuries after a tree fell on the vehicle at Mulki.
Two houses were completely destroyed while several of them suffered a partial damage in the incessant rain that’s lashing Dakshina Kannada for the past few days. As many as 225 electricity poles were uprooted while 13 transformers and eight bridges suffered damages.
In Udupi and Karwar, intense erosion along the coast is posing a threat to people living close to it. At several places, boulders dumped to prevent sea erosion have been washed away due to strong currents. Udupi district, including Udupi town, continued to see heavy rainfall on Wednesday.
Kodagu is shivering under heavy downpour, coupled with strong winds. Several residential areas in Madikeri are forced to spend nights in darkness due to power outages.
The Kodagu administration has declared holiday for schools and colleges for next two days. With Cauvery river flowing in full steam, the forest department has barred visitors to Dubare elephant camp.
However, hundreds of tourists and locals, braving chill weather, visited the Abbey Falls near Madikeri to catch the glimpse of the cascading waterfall.
The water level in Harangi reservoir has reached 2,841.93 feet, just 15 feet short of reaching its maximum level. Meanwhile, Hemavathi dam at Goruru in Hassan clocked 22,000 cusec inflow on Wednesday. It is only 18 feet short of reaching full reservoir level. Yagachi dam in Belur taluk is full to the brim. Excess water is being released downstream.
Vehicular movement to Kukke Subrahmanya was hit following a tree fall on Bisle ghat road in Sakleshpur taluk.
Relentless showers have left the paddy growers in Shivamogga worried. Ready to harvest paddy cultivated on vast tracts lying on farms due to inclement weather even as the grains are sprouting.
Agumbe in Thirthahalli taluk has recorded 150 mm of rain in the last 24 hours while Maani in Hosanagar taluk registered 130 mm.
Up north, Manjra and Bhima rivers are flowing above the danger mark in Bidar and Kalaburagi districts, courtesy heavy rain in Kalyana Karnataka districts and upstream in Maharashtra. Kamalnagar (Bidar), Shahpur (Yadgir) and Raichur city experienced heavy rain intermittently on Wednesday, posing hardships to the people living in low-lying areas.
In the last 24 hours (ending 8.30 am), Almatti dam in Bagalkot district received a massive 4.88 tmcft of water. The reservoir has been receiving heavy inflows due to unyielding showers in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra. The dam, as on May 28,has 40.787 tmcft of water.
Many parts of north and south interior Karnataka received light to moderate spells of rain on Wednesday. The weather department has predicted more widespread rain for the state in the next few days.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> India> Karnataka / by DHNS / May 29th, 2025
Rs one crore proposal has been forwarded to the state to improve the musical fountain in the area alongside establishing a rain shelter – with nearly 500 seating capacity – across the fountain.
Madikeri:
The Harangi Reservoir in Kodagu will soon witness beautification work to attract more tourists. The reservoir, meanwhile, wears a colourful look as the crest gates have now been equipped with LED lights.
Harangi Reservoir near Kushalnagar is one of the popular tourist destinations in the district and is visited by over two lakh tourists annually. A minimum entry fee of Rs 10 is being currently collected from the visitors. However, steps are now being taken to improve the reservoir to make it aesthetically appealing.
“The LED lights to the crest gates have been fixed using the Annual Maintenance Funds. More beautification works will commence shortly as several proposals have been readied for the development of the reservoir,” confirmed Chennakeshava, the system engineer of Harangi Reservoir.
Meanwhile, the newly appointed Executive Engineer, Puttaswamy confirmed, “Two proposals for the beautification of the reservoir premises have received approval and the work for the same will begin shortly.”
He explained that a Rs 98 lakh project has been approved to fix lighting across the reservoir area. “The garden, drainage gallery, crest gates and the surrounding areas of the dam will be fitted with improved lighting under the project,” he added.
Further, a chain link fencing will be installed across the musical fountain area in the reservoir “A conflict wild elephant had entered the reservoir premises a couple of times. To avoid this in future, Rs 90 lakh has been approved for the establishment of chain link fencing. The funds will also be used to equip the fountain with a diesel generator,” he explained.
Apart from the approved projects, Rs one crore proposal has been forwarded to the state to improve the musical fountain in the area alongside establishing a rain shelter – with nearly 500 seating capacity – across the fountain.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Prajna GR, Express News Service / August 25th, 2022
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