Water in major reservoirs at less than 17 per cent of combined capacity

NEW DELHI: The country’s 91 major water reservoirs are at less than 17 per cent of their combined capacity, the Central Water Commission said on Thursday.

At 26.222 billion cubic metres, the available water in these reservoirs was 18.45 bcm below the available capacity a year ago and 6.01 bcm below the average of the last 10 years.

Nine reservoirs, most of them in Maharashtra, do not have water, the commission said, adding that with the scenario could improve with the onset of monsoon over the Kerala coast.

As per the commission, the most deficient area is the basin of river Tapi, which originates in Madhya Pradesh and flows to Maharashtra and Gujarat, followed by the Krishna basin, which caters to Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.

The water level in the area drained by river Indus, which flows through Jammu and Kashmir, is also below average, it said. A similar situation exists in the Mahi, Mahanadi and Cauvery basins.

The situation is much better in the areas drained by the rivers Kutch, Ganga, Sabarmati, Narmada and Godavari, with water levels better than normal, the commission said.

The reservoirs at Nagarjuna Sagar, Bhima (Ujjani), Jayakwadi ,Girna, Yeldari, Kabani, Sholayam, Dudhganga and upper Tapi have negligible water. However, in Vanivilas Sagar dam, popularly known as Mari Kanive in Karnataka, the water level is at half its normal capacity, the commission said.

The total capacity of the country’s reservoirs is 253.388 bcm and the capacity is being augmented. 80 projects are underway, of which 40 are likely to be completed by next year. These will help irrigate 8 million hectares of farmland.