Mumbai Water Crisis: Water Level in 7 Lakes Dips to 3-year Low, of 34.5%

The water levels in the seven lakes supplying Mumbai's water dropped to 34.5 percent of total capacity on Wednesday, marking the lowest level in three years. In February, the reserves stood at 49.3 percent, indicating a continuous decline. Despite this, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has reassured residents that no water cuts will be enforced in the city. Comparatively, on the same day last year, the water stock was nearly 44 percent, while in 2022 it reached 46.5 percent during the same period. Each month, the city relies on 12-13 percent of the lake quota to meet its water demands. BMC officials have dispelled concerns of a summer water cut, citing recent approvals for additional water from the state government.

A BMC official said, "At the end of February, we sent a letter to the State government for additional water, and it has been approved. The BMC had floated a request for an extra 1.37 lakh million water from the Bhatsa Lake and an extra 93,500 million litres of water from Upper Vaitarna. We will be getting that, at present no water cuts are being considered. "He also mentioned that the decline is attributed to reduced rainfall in September and October during the monsoon season. Given that Mumbai's official monsoon onset is scheduled for June 25, there is concern that the current water reserves may be depleted well before the arrival of the monsoon. Further, the BMC official added, "All the water cuts are currently due to repair work at various pumping stations like Bhandup, Pise pumping station and more." BMC announced a 24-hour, 15% water cut in Mumbai due to repair work at the Bhandup plant. The 5% water cut from March 15 to April 24 in Mumbai due to cleaning activities scheduled at the water purification plant in Bhandup, one of Asia's largest plants. The additional cut across the city is due to insufficient water in the Pise Dam in Thane district.