Online Desk  :   Sixteen spillways of the Kaptai Hydro-Electric Power Plant in Rangamati will be opened at 10PM on Saturday as the water in Kaptai Lake has increased beyond normal. Engineer ATM Abduzzaher, manager of Karnaphuli Hydropower Station, said the water level of Kaptai Lake was 108 feet Mean Sea Level (MSL) at around 3PM on Saturday. The full water capacity of Kaptai Lake is 109 feet MSL.

As the water levels in Kaptai Lake have reached near the danger level, flooding the lower areas adjacent to the lake may arise. The authorities have decided to release water through 16 gates at a rate of 6 inches per second at 10AM on Saturday, he added.

It will discharge 9,000 cusecs of water every second, which falls into the Karnaphuli River, he said adding that if the water level rises further, the opening of the spillway may have to be increased.

The country’s only hydroelectric plant located at Kaptai in Rangamati generates a total of 230 MW of electricity from five units, which is fed into the national grid.