Water level in 91 major reservoirs in the country has increased by 38 per cent of their total capacity this week, the government said on Tuesday. The south west monsoon has become active India bringing rise in reservoirs after a long dry spell.
According to Union Water Resources Ministry, 59.366 Billion Cubic Metre (BCM) of water was available in these reservoirs for the week ending July 28.
The current storage, though, is 13 per cent short of the stock available during the corresponding period last year and six per cent less than the 10-year average level for the same span, the ministry said in a statement. The total capacity of these reservoirs is 157.799 BCM.
Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Tripura, Odisha, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala have reported lower levels of water in major reservoirs compared to last year. Karnataka has reported equal storage.
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have reported better storage vis-a-vis last year for the corresponding period. The estimated water storage capacity of all reservoirs in the country is 253.388 BCM. Thirty seven of the major reservoirs have hydropower benefit with installed capacity of more than 60 MW.