Two-thirds of India’s 166 major reservoirs had a storage below 50 per cent of the capacity, with the overall level dropping to marginally above 40 per cent this week, data from the Central Water Commission (CWC) revealed.

The CWC’s weekly status on the major reservoirs showed that storage was 40.86 per cent or 74.999 billion cubic metres (BCM) of the 183.565 BCM capacity. The level was 14.7 percentage points higher than a year ago and 26.1 percentage points more than normal (past 10 years).

Of the total reservoirs, the level in 110 was below 50 per cent, with storage below 40 per cent in 78 of them. Only 10 dams had storage above 80 per cent of their capacity. 

34% rain deficient

According to India Meteorological Department (IMD), data received from 725 districts show that 34 per cent of the country received deficient or no rainfall since March 1. 

The level in the southern region dropped to below 30 per cent of the   55.288 BCM capacity in its 47 reservoirs. It was lower than 32 per cent a year ago. Storage in Telangana was the lowest in the region at 21 per cent, followed by Karnataka at 26 per cent. The level in Andhra was almost 40 per cent, while it was 39 per cent in Tamil Nadu and 37.5 per cent in Kerala.

The eastern region was another where storage was lower than 40 per cent of the capacity at 37 per cent. The situation in Assam and West Bengal was precarious with the level in two reservoirs in each in the States down to 17 per cent and 13 per cent, respectively. The level in Jharkhand was 54 per cent, while it was 37 per cent in Odisha. Meghalaya’s lone reservoir was filled to nearly 75 per cent.

The western region had the highest storage, with the level in its 53 reservoirs, being 48 per cent or 18.558 BCM of the 38.094 BCM capacity. Storage in Goa and Maharashtra was 43 per cent each, while in Gujarat, it was 55 per cent. 

More dip likely

The level in the 28 reservoirs of the central region was 47.6 per cent of the 48.588 BCM capacity at 23.132 BCM. Storage in Chhattisgarh was 61 per cent, while in Madhya Pradesh, it was 49 per cent. Storage in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand was 44 per cent and 33 per cent, respectively. 

In the northern region, storage in the 11 reservoirs was 44 per cent or 8743 BCM of the 19.836 BCM capacity. The level in Punjab was 68 per cent, while in Himachal and Rajasthan, it was 37.5 per cent and 49 per cent, respectively.

With the IMD predicting heatwaves across some parts of the country, the level will likely decline further. 

Published on April 23, 2026