Water storage in India’s 155 major reservoirs dropped below 60 per cent of the capacity this week with 89 per cent of the country receiving deficient rains since January.
Data from the Central Water Commission (CWC) showed that the 155 reservoirs level was 58 per cent of the 180.852 billion cubic metres (BCM) capacity at 104.580 BCM. The storage, however, is higher than a year ago and the last 10 years average (normal level).
CWC’s weekly bulletin on live storage status in major reservoirs said the level in the lone reservoirs in Punjab and Bihar were worrisome, even as the storage in eastern, northern and southern regions fell below 60 per cent of the capacity.
IMD data
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), data received from 718 districts showed 51 per cent received no rains from January 1 to February 13, while 38 per cent received deficient rainfall.
All the districts in Bihar, Gujarat and Telangana are rain-deficient, while 74 of 75 Uttar Pradesh districts and 51 of the 52 districts in Madhya Pradesh have received deficit rainfall.
In the 11 reservoirs of the northern region, the storage dropped to 32 per cent of the 19.836 BCM capacity at 6.406 BCM. Punjab’s Thein dam was filled to 13 per cent, while Himachal and Rajasthan reservoirs were filled to 26 per cent and 57 per cent of the capacity, respectively.
The level in the 25 reservoirs of the eastern region was 57 per cent or 11.769 BCM of the 20.798 BCM capacity. Barring Jharkhand (63 per cent) and Tripura (74 per cent ), the storage in other States were below 60 per cent.
Further drop likely
Of the 50 reservoirs in the western region, the storage was 70 per cent of the 37.367 BCM at 26.141 BCM. Goa’s lone reservoir was filled to 84 per cent, while Maharashtra and Gujarat dams were filled to 70 per cent.
In the central region’s 26 reservoirs, the level was 29.235 BCM or 61 per cent of the 48.227 BCM capacity. Except Madhya Pradesh (64 per cent), the level in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh was below 60 per cent.
In the southern region, the storage in the 43 reservoirs was 57 per cent of the 54.634 BCM at 31.029 BCM. The level in Andhra Pradesh was 70 per cent of the capacity, while it was 81 per cent in Tamil Nadu. Kerala and Telangana were filled to 61 per cent but the storage in Karnataka was down to 57 per cent.
With maximum and minimum temperatures being above normal, the storage will likely drop further despite forecasts of rain over the next few days in some regions.