49% water so far in Maharashtra reservoirs

Mumbai: Reservoirs in Maharashtra currently have 49 per cent water stock as against 57 per cent during the same time last year, an official from the state water resources department said.

Dams in the Konkan region, which received heavy rainfall last week, are filled up to 66.49 per cent of their total capacity, he said.

"As on Sunday evening, the water stock in the state's reservoirs was 49.21 per cent. Last year, there was 57.16 per cent water on the same date. The gap (between water stock figures of 2019 and this year) is almost eight per cent," the official said.

"On August 2, the gap in water stock figures of 2019 compared to this year was three per cent, which increased to almost eight per cent on Sunday," he said.

Last week, heavy rains lashed Mumbai, Palghar, Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts falling under the Konkan region, while there were scattered showers of medium intensity in the rest of the state, he noted.

Dams in the Konkan division are filled up to 66.49 per cent of their capacity as against 86.32 per cent on August 9 last year, the official said.

On the contrary, dams in the Aurangabad division, where many areas remain perennially dry, have 43.35 per cent water stock compared to 23.46 per cent last year, he said.

Besides, reservoirs in the Nagpur division have 54.49 per cent water stock as against 31.91 per cent last year. The Nashik division has 42.46 per cent water stock as against 57.6 per cent last year, while the Pune division has 52.31 per cent stock compared to 83.38 per cent in 2019, he added.