In a first this monsoon season, water levels at key reservoirs dip below 10-year average
New Delhi: Water level in India's key reservoirs slipped below the 10-average, a first this monsoon season, as rainfall activity turned sluggish across many parts of the country. According to data from the Central Water Commission (CWC), water level at 146 reservoirs as on Thursday was at 111.285 billion cubic metres (bcm), 62% of their combined storage capacity. The level was unchanged week-on-week, but was lower than 135.88 bcm a year ago, and less than the 10-year average of 112.92 bcm.
“The live storage available in 146 reservoirs as of Thursday is 82 % of the live storage of corresponding period of last year and 99% of storage of average of last ten years," the CWC said. During the week ended 16 August, India received 26.0 mm of rainfall, 58% below normal for the period. A higher water level bodes well for India's agriculture because farmers mostly rely on reservoir water for irrigating rabi crops.
Water level in reservoirs in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Nagaland and Chhattisgarh was higher year-on-year, while in Punjab, Rajasthan, Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, the level fell. As far as regional variations are concerned, water level at 40 reservoirs in the southern region were 34% lower than last year and 30% below last week’s levels. Water levels in 21 major dams in the eastern India were 14% less than the corresponding period last year and 13% lower than the last 10-year average level.
This is due to 20% and 13% deficient monsoon so far in east India and south peninsula, respectively. A large segment of agriculture crops in these states are still rain-fed. About 10 reservoirs in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan
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