Less than 10 per cent of India’s 166 major reservoirs had storage above 80 per cent, while 55 per cent of them were filled below 45 per cent of the capacity, according to data from the Central Water Commission (CWC). Overall, the level dropped below 45 per cent this week.
Storage in reservoirs dropped this week despite a major part of the country receiving excess pre-monsoon rain, data from the India Meteorological Department(IMD) showed. Over 60 per cent of the 725 districts received excess or normal rain since March 1. However, deficient rainfall in over 70 per cent of the country during January-February has brought down storage sharply.
The CWC, in its weekly report on the major reservoirs, said storage in the major reservoirs dropped to 44.7 per cent or 82.070 billion cubic metres (BCM) of the 183.565 BCM capacity. The level was 18 percentage points higher than a year ago and 27 percentage points more than normal (last 10 years).
Precarious south
Storage in all the five regions slipped below 55 per cent, with the level in the southern region below 35 per cent (also below a year ago). The western region’s level was the highest at 53.63 per cent.
In the 47 reservoirs of the southern region, storage dropped to 33.6 per cent of 55.288 BCM at 18.593 BCM. The level in Telangana was below 25 per cent and in Karnataka, it was 32 per cent. Storage in Tamil Nadu was 42 per cent, while in Kerala and Andhra, it was 36 per cent and 41 per cent, respectively.
In the western region’s 53 reservoirs, the level was 20.439 BCM of the 38.094 BCM. Storage in Goa’s lone reservoir dropped below 50 per cent, while in Maharashtra and Gujarat, it was 50 per cent and 57 per cent, respectively.
Punjab’s lone reservoir was filled over 60 per cent, but the level in Himachal 3 and Rajasthan’s 7 reservoirs was 38 per cent and 51 per cent, respectively. Overall, the level in the northern region’s 11 reservoirs was 44 per cent of the 19.836 BCM capacity at 8.703 BCM.
Decline may slow
The 28 reservoirs in the central region were filled to 52 per cent or 25.152 BCM of the 48.588 BCM capacity. Storage in Chhattisgarh was 66 per cent, while it was 53 per cent in Madhya Pradesh. In Uttar Pradesh, the level was 47 per cent and in Uttarakhand, it was 36 per cent.
In the eastern region’s 27 reservoirs, storage was 42 per cent of the 21.759 BCM capacity at 9.183 BCM. The level in Assam’s 2 reservoirs was 15 per cent, while it was 16 per cent in West Bengal. In Bihar, storage was 35 per cent, in Jharkhand 58 per cent, and in Odisha 43 per cent.
With unseasonal rain lashing many parts of the country, the drop in storage will likely slow a tad in the coming week.
Published on April 9, 2026