Reservoir · Tamil Nadu · India · CWC · SOUTHERN region
Papanasam (Manimuthar)
Papanasam Dam
19.9% of gross capacity
Gross capacity
5.2 TMC (148 MCM)
Live capacity
4.5 TMC (127 MCM)
River
Tamirabarani
Basin
West Flowing
Primary use
multiple
Operator
TNPWD
Coordinates
8.733°N, 77.417°E
Last updated
2026-10-22
Capacity in TMC
Papanasam (Manimuthar) Dam has a gross capacity of 5.2 TMC (148 MCM), of which 4.5 TMC (127 MCM) is live storage; it is currently at 19.9% of gross capacity, holding 1.1 TMC (31 MCM) (24.4% of live capacity).
- Gross capacity
- 5.2 TMC (148 MCM)
- Live capacity
- 4.5 TMC (127 MCM)
- Current storage
- 1.1 TMC (31 MCM)
TMC is thousand million cubic feet, the unit used in Indian water reporting. 1 TMC = 28.3168 million cubic metres (MCM). Figures are converted from CWC, which publishes million cubic metres. The percentage is labelled live or gross only when the stored volume matches that capacity.
Current fill
19.9%vs 7 days ago
+1.9 ppgaining
vs 1 year ago
-42.7 ppyear-over-year
7-day trend
↑rising
Drought context
Storage vs October average
49%of normal
19.9% full on 2026-10-22, against an average of 41.0% for October across 2 years of readings (-21.1 points).
Rain over the last three months · 11 October 2026
Near normal
In the three months to 11 October 2026 the area around Papanasam (Manimuthar) had rain close to normal for the season. Rainfall compared with the long-run record for the same season at this point (Copernicus Global Drought Observatory, SPI-3 index −0.56). Rain, not storage. India drought figures →
Weekly storage
Fill history — multi-year
About this reservoir
Data source
official
Storage data: CWC. CWC region: SOUTHERN.
Catchment Weather
Past 30 days + 14-day forecast · Open-Meteo
Satellite imagery: Esri, Maxar, Earthstar Geographics. Map: Esri, HERE, Garmin, © OpenStreetMap contributors. 8.733°N, 77.417°E · Open in Google Maps
About Papanasam Dam
As of October 22, 2026, Papanasam Dam is filled to 19.9% of its gross capacity, holding 1.1 TMC (31 MCM) of a gross 5.2 TMC (148 MCM). At this level the reservoir is critically low. Of that total, 4.5 TMC (127 MCM) is live storage.
Over the most recent week on record the fill level has risen by 1.9 percentage points, and it is 42.7 points below its level on the same date a year earlier.
Across the readings we hold for Papanasam Dam — 77 data points between April 3, 2025 and October 22, 2026 — the level has ranged from a low of 17.3% (October 1, 2026) to a high of 82.6% (December 26, 2025). On average the reservoir is fullest around December and at its lowest around September.
It is operated by TNPWD primarily for multiple purposes. It lies within the West Flowing basin at 8.733°N, 77.417°E.
Key facts
- Current fill level
- 19.9% of total capacity
- Water stored
- 1.1 TMC (31 MCM)
- Total capacity
- 5.2 TMC (148 MCM)
- Usable capacity
- 4.5 TMC (127 MCM)
- 7-day change
- ▲ 1.9 pp
- Year-on-year
- ▼ 42.7 pp
- Primary use
- Multipurpose
- River
- Tamirabarani
- River basin
- West Flowing
- Operator
- TNPWD
- Coordinates
- 8.733°N, 77.417°E
- Last updated
- October 22, 2026
Recent readings
| Date | Fill level | Volume (hm³) |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Oct 2026 | 19.9% | 31 |
| 15 Oct 2026 | 17.9% | 28 |
| 8 Oct 2026 | 17.3% | 27 |
| 1 Oct 2026 | 17.3% | 27 |
| 24 Sep 2026 | 17.9% | 28 |
| 17 Sep 2026 | 17.9% | 28 |
| 10 Sep 2026 | 18.6% | 29 |
| 3 Sep 2026 | 19.2% | 30 |
| 27 Aug 2026 | 20.5% | 32 |
| 20 Aug 2026 | 22.3% | 35 |
| 13 Aug 2026 | 24.4% | 38 |
| 6 Aug 2026 | 25.6% | 40 |