Karad: Heavy discharge of water at Khodashi Dam due to rise in the level of the Krishna river during the monsoon season, in Karad, Maharashtra, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025. (PTI Photo) (PTI08_21_2025_000239B)
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The storage in three of the five regions in the country was up over 90 per cent of the capacity this week, even as over 45 per cent of the 161 major reservoirs were nearly brimming over, data from the Central Water Commission showed.
The CWC’s weekly report on the storage situation said the level in the major reservoirs was 87 per cent of the 182.496 billion cubic metres (BCM) capacity, at 158.765 BCM. The storage was 2.5 per cent higher than last year and nearly 15 per cent above normal (the last 10 years). Twenty-five reservoirs were full, while the level in another 49 was over 90 per cent of their capacity.
Ten dams in Maharashtra, four dams in Rajasthan, two dams in Madhya Pradesh, one each in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Odisha and Karnataka, and the lone reservoirs in Mizoram and Goa were full. The reservoir situation augurs well for the agriculture sector, including the rabi season. However, some of the regions have suffered a setback.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), rain this monsoon was 20 per cent deficient in the East and North-Eastern region as of September 11, while the precipitation in the North-West region was 34 per cent surplus, in Central India 11 per cent excess and in South India 7 per cent more than normal. Overall, it was 8 per cent surplus.
Region-wise storage
The storage dropped in the southern region, while increasing in the other four. In the southern region, the level in the 45 reservoirs was 84.27 per cent of the 54.939 BCM capacity at 46.30 BCM. The level was above 90 per cent in Telangana at 91 per cent and Karnataka at 93 per cent. In Andhra Pradesh, the storage was 89 per cent, in Kerala, it was 56 per cent and in Tamil Nadu, it was 71.87 per cent.
The level in the 11 reservoirs of the northern region surged to 92 per cent or 18.243 BCM of the 19.836 BCM capacity. The storage in Punjab was 88.65 per cent, in Rajasthan 95.5 per cent and in Himachal 91 per cent.
The 50 reservoirs in the western region were filled to 91.5 per cent of the 37.357 BCM capacity at 34.147 BCM. The level in Gujarat was 85.66 per cent, and in Maharashtra, it was 96.83 per cent, besides the fully-filled Goan reservoir.
In the eastern region, the storage in the 27 reservoirs was 75 per cent of the 21.759 BCM capacity at 16.22 BCM. The level in Tripura was 96.5 per cent and 83.5 per cent in Meghalaya. The level in Odisha improved to 77.5 per cent. Among other States, the level in West Bengal dropped below 50 per cent.
In the 28 reservoirs of the central region, the level was 90 per cent of the 48.588 BCM capacity at 43.829 BCM. In Chhattisgarh, the dams were filled to 75 per cent, and in Madhya Pradesh, they were filled to 94 per cent. The level in Uttar Pradesh was 77.5 per cent and in Uttarakhand, it was 89 per cent.
With the monsoon still active and experts saying the monsoon could extend beyond September, the level will likely rise further.
Published on September 11, 2025