Domestic reservoirs storage level drop to 24%, southern states hit hardest: Official data

Amid scorching summer, the total live storage available in 150 key reservoirs across India is 24 per cent of the total live storage capacity, marking a 21 per cent decrease recorded during the same period last year, according to official data.

The Central Water Commission (CWC) released its weekly bulletin on Friday on the live storage status of 150 key reservoirs across India, revealing a significant decline in water levels compared to last year.

The southern region, encompassing Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, is the most affected. The 42 reservoirs in this region have a total capacity of 53.334 BCM, with current storage at just 7.455 BCM (14 per cent). This is significantly lower than last year's 25 per cent and the normal 20 per cent.

The total live storage available is 43.293 billion cubic meters (BCM), which is 24 per cent of the total live storage capacity of these reservoirs.

This marks a 21 per cent decrease from the 55.037 BCM recorded during the same period last year and is also below the normal storage of 45.480 BCM, based on the average of the last ten years.

The current storage represents 79 per cent of last year's levels and 95 per cent of the ten-year average normal storage.

The northern states of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan have 10 monitored reservoirs with a combined live storage capacity of 19.663 BCM, but currently hold only 5.554 BCM (28 per cent). This is a decline from last year's 37 per cent and below the normal 31 per cent.

In contrast, the eastern region, which includes Assam, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Tripura, Nagaland, and Bihar, shows a slight improvement. The 23 reservoirs in this region have a total capacity of 20.430 BCM, with current storage at 6.013 BCM (29 per cent). This is better than last year's 26 per cent and the normal 28 per cent.

Gujarat and Maharashtra are experiencing lower storage levels compared to the last year.

The 49 reservoirs in this region have a combined capacity of 37.130 BCM, but are currently at 9.400 BCM (25 per cent), down from last year's 29 per cent but slightly above the normal 24 per cent.

The central states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are also facing reduced storage levels. Their 26 reservoirs, with a total capacity of 48.227 BCM, currently hold 14.871 BCM (31 per cent). This is lower than last year's 38 per cent but above the normal 29 per cent.

Further analysis shows that storage levels are highly variable across different river basins.

The Ganga, Subarnarekha, Brahmaputra, Barak, Brahmani, Baitarni, Narmada, Tapi and Sabarmati basins have better than normal storage.

However, the Krishna, east flowing rivers between Pennar and Kanyakumari, and Cauvery basins are deficient. The east flowing rivers between Mahanadi and Pennar are highly deficient.