The MET department has already predicted a severe summer and the water stored in 91 reservoirs around the country is only at 34% of the total live storage, a 7% drop when compared to levels last year Most Indian states are staring at a water crisis this summer.
With the heat setting in earlier than expected, reports of water scarcity have started coming in from across North, Central and parts of south India.
Last year, the live storage available in these reservoirs for the corresponding period was 61.208 BCM.
Most river basins have witnessed a reduction in water, mostly due to deficient winter rainfall.
In January and February, 22 states, including Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Jharkhand, faced largely deficient rainfall, while 10 states, including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, parts of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, got deficient rainfall.
The only basins which show a marginal increase from last year are Krishna and Cauvery river basins and west-flowing rivers of the south “North India consisting of seven subdivisions (East and UP, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir) receives about 17% of its annual rainfall during the winter season (January to March).
The water storage in the two biggest reservoirs shared by these states—Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar—were at 19 and 8% respectively, which is less than the average storage on this day over the last ten years of 30% and 19% respectively.
The current live storage capacity of these figures also compare poorly with average live storage across the country of 34% this year, 37% last year and 38% average of last ten years,” elaborated Himanshu Thakkar of South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People.
With temperatures hitting an all-time high, parched conditions are expected.
The northeast monsoon, which helps to increase the storage level in reservoirs in the state, had left seven districts with deficient rainfall last year.