Water levels in country's reservoirs down at 21%: Indian government

New Delhi: With the mercury soaring, water stock in 91 major reservoirs across the country has plunged to 21 per cent of their total capacity, Indian government said on Friday.
According to the Water Resources Ministry, 32.3925 billion cubic metre (BCM) of water was available in these reservoirs for the week ending April 28 out of a total capacity of 157.799 BCM. The levels are 36 per cent less than the stock available in the corresponding period last year and 23 per cent shorter than the 10-year average storage levels for the same period, the Ministry said.
Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Punjab, Odisha, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala have reported lower levels of water in major reservoirs compared to last year.
Only two states, Andhra Pradesh and Tripura, have reported better storage vis-a-vis last year for the same period. For the week ending on April 21, stock available was 34.082 BCM or 22 per cent of their total storage capacity. The estimated water storage capacity of all reservoirs in the country is 253.88 BCM. Out of the total number of major reservoirs, 37 major reservoirs have hydropower benefit with installed capacity of more than 60 MW.