Country's water reservoir storage levels surpass last year's figures: CWC

The Central Water Commission (CWC) has reported an improvement in India's reservoir storage levels, with the total live storage in 155 monitored reservoirs reaching 98.974 billion cubic meters (BCM).

This represents 55 per cent of their total live storage capacity, marking a 120 per cent increase compared to the same period last year and 116 per cent of the average storage over the past ten years, according to the weekly bulletin released by the CWC.

In the northern region that comprises Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan, the reservoirs are holding 30 per cent of their total capacity, lower than last year's 40 per cent, indicating a deficit.

While in the eastern region (Assam, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Tripura, Nagaland, Bihar), the storage level stood at 54 per cent, slightly below last year's 55 per cent and the normal 57 per cent.

In the western region (Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa), the storage has surged to 67 per cent of the capacity, significantly higher than last year's 56 per cent and the normal 51 per cent.

The reservoirs in the central region (Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh) have a 57 per cent capacity, improving from 53 per cent last year and surpassing the normal level of 50 per cent.

While in the southern region (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu), a storage level of 53 per cent was recorded, outperforming last year's 30 per cent and the normal 41 per cent.

About 100 reservoirs reported higher storage than the last year, while 112 exceeded normal levels. There are 20 reservoirs that have less than 80 per cent of their normal storage, with eight at critically low levels below 50 per cent.

The rainfall deficiency has affected several IMD sub-divisions, particularly in Punjab, Uttarakhand, and Odisha, leading to reduced storage in affected reservoirs, the bulletin said.

Better-than-normal storage was recorded in major basins such as the Ganga, Narmada, Godavari, Krishna, and Cauvery, while the Indus and Brahmani and Baitarni basins showed a storage deficit.