Reservoir levels in region drop to half, but still better than last year

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

With the intense summer heat continuing since the past month, water storage levels in large, medium, and minor irrigation projects across Marathwada have been declining rapidly. However, compared to last year, the overall water stock is still reported to be nearly double, indicating a relatively satisfactory situation.

Over the past four days, temperatures across all districts in Marathwada have consistently crossed 41°C. The rising heat has significantly impacted water storage in dams, as higher temperatures accelerate evaporation, leading to a steady decline in reservoir levels.

At the Jayakwadi project in Paithan, around 50 per cent water storage remains as of April 25. However, this is nearly double the level recorded on the same date last year. Marathwada has a total of 11 major dams, which currently hold an average of 52 pc water storage, according to the Water Resources Department. In comparison, the storage level on the same date last year was only 27 pc.

The region also has 75 medium-sized dams, which currently have 41 pc water storage, as per the Irrigation Department. Districts such as Beed, Latur, Parbhani, and Dharashiv have storage levels below 40 pc. On the same date last year, the figure stood at just 26 pc.

Marathwada further has 758 minor irrigation projects with a total storage capacity of 1,653.40 million cubic metres (MCM). At present, these projects collectively hold 547 MCM of water, which is around 33 pc of their capacity, officials said.

Year-on-year comparison shows improvement in water storage

Large projects: 2,781 MCM (this year) vs 176 MCM (last year)

Medium projects: 392 MCM vs 256 MCM

Minor projects: 547 MCM vs 325 MCM