West, South may face severe water stress this summer

The combined water level in 91 major reservoirs across the nation is just 25% of their full capacity

As the country braces for a long and drier than usual summer season, water levels in 91 major reservoirs across the country do not look promising. There could be a serious drawdown if the heat wave persists beyond June.

From Central Water Commission (CWC) data as of Thursday, the level in the reservoirs is a combined 25 per cent of their full capacity.

More than the national average, the regional picture is of greater concern. A severe drinking water, power and irrigation crisis looms in parts of Andhra, Telangana, Karnataka and Maharashtra. Levels in the reservoirs of southern and western India are 17 per cent and 21 per cent, respectively, of their full capacity.

Worryingly, this is also part of the area which might see a 0.5-1 degrees Celsius above normal temperature in April-June, according to the India Meteorological Department forecast of Thursday.

It said maximum temperatures in the core heat wave zone that included the meteorological sub-divisions of Marathwada, Vidharbha, Madhya Maharashtra, coastal Andhra and Telangana was expected to stay above normal. This could lead to quicker than expected drying of water in regional reservoirs.

The CWC data showed the water level in the Yeldagri and Manikdohi dams of Maharashtra were around four and eight per cent, respectively, of their full levels. Yeldagri is the second largest dam in the state's Marathwada. The Girna (Nashik), Ujjani (Solapur) and Paithan reservoirs have already gone dry. The Nagarjunasagar reservoir in Andhra is dry. Levels in the Almatti,  Malaprabha and Tungabhadra reservoirs are less than 10 per cent of their full capacity.

All 12 river basins have water levels less than last year at this time.

"The winter rainfall was less and if the summer turns out to be drier than usual, it can cause severe shortage of water in vulnerable areas as in the next three months demand will peak," Bharat Sharma, coordinator at International Water Management Institute — India Programme told Business Standard.

He said there is a serious mismatch between demand and supply of water in Vidharbha, Marathwada, Odisha, Telangana, Andhra as these areas do not have adequate canal irrigation, while the ground water is also falling.

"The production of green fodder and summer vegetables, on which the livelihood of millions of small farmers depend, could also get impacted and also lead to conflicts in highly populated areas with low piped water supply," Sharma said.

IMD’s forecast also said the warmer than normal temperatures might prevail over all the 36 sub-divisions of the country during the April-June period, with temperatures in Northwest India expected to be at least one degree above normal.

It plans to issue regular heat wave alerts and other warnings, valid for the next 15 days.