Water stock in Maha dams nearly 3-times more than last year

(Eds: Updating figures)

Mumbai, May 16 () Even as the coronavirus situationin Maharashtra is grim, there is some solace for the state asfar as the water stock is concerned as it has reported nearlythree times more useful storage as compared to thecorresponding period last year.

The state had faced successive years of drought overthe past few years. However, most parts of the state hadreceived good rainfall last year.

According to a Maharashtra government report ofSaturday, the 3,267 major, medium and minor projects acrossthe state collectively reported live (useful) storage of16,472.13 million cubic metre, which is 40.28 per cent oftheir total capacity of holding 40,897.95 million cubic metresof live stock.

On this day last year, the collective stock availableacross these dams was 14.8 per cent.

However, some major dams, including Manjara (in Beed)in the Marathwada region, which witnesses parched swathesduring the summer, have run out of their useful content thisyear too as they had in the previous season.

The nine major dams in the Aurangabad division ofMarathwada have 1,792.31 million cubic metre live storage tillnow, which is 43.74 per cent of their total useful contentholding capacity of 4,097.77 million cubic metre.

Last year, the stock available across these dams inAurangabad, Beed, Hingoli, Nanded, Osmanabad and Parbhanidistricts on this day was just 0.44 per cent.

The Jayakwadi dam at Paithan in Aurangabad district, akey project in the region, had dried (in terms of live stock)last year.

However, this year, it has reported a big leap of1,006.32 million cubic metre useful stock, that is 46.35 percent of its capacity of holding 2,170.93 million cubic metreuseful storage.

Similarly, the dams like Majalgaon (Beed), Yeldari andSiddeshwar (Hingoli) and Lower Terna (Osmanabad) recordedrelatively better stock this year over the previous season.

Manjara, Sina Kolegaon (Osmanabad) and Lower Dudhana(Parbhani) dams, however, have run out of their useful stockas they had last year.

The 10 major dams in the Amravati division ofVidarbha, which too witnessed dry stretches when thetemperature soared, have at present 1,187.69 million cubicmetre live stock, that is 47.84 per cent of their collectiveuseful storage of 2,482.65 million cubic metre.

On the same day last year, the total useful stockavailable at these dams in the division- which coversdistricts such as Akola, Amravati, Buldhana and Yavatmal- was15.83 per cent.

The Khadakpurna and Pentakali dams, which ran intodead storage last year, have reported 29.35 per cent (figurelast updated on April 27 this year, according to the report)and 81.83 per cent (updated on February 14) of theirrespective total useful stock holding capacity now.

In the Nagpur division of the region, the live stockavailable in the 15 major dams was 1,731.4 million cubicmetre, that is, 50.64 per cent of their collective 3,418.87million cubic metre useful content.

In 2019, the stock available on the corresponding dayin the dams in the division that covers districts likeBhandara, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Gondia, besides Nagpurwas 6.85 per cent.

The Gosikhurd (Bhandara) and Nand (Nagpur) dams, whichhad no live stock left last year, have reported availabilityof 15.18 per cent and 22.7 per cent of their respective usefulstorage holding capacity.

The six dams in the Konkan region- comprising Palghar,Sindhudurg and Thane- have 49.07 per cent (826.18 millioncubic metre) of their collective 1,683.65 million cubic metrecapacity live stock as against 30.66 per cent last year.

Nashik division's 24 dams together have available1,566.79 million cubic metre (41.91 per cent) of their3,738.75 million cubic metre collective live water stockholding capacity.

In the previous year, the stock available in theregion that covers districts like Ahmednagar, Jalgaon andNashik, was 11.51 per cent.

The Pune region with 29 dams has 4,086.66 millioncubic metre (36.22 per cent) live stock available at presentof the total useful storage capacity of 11,281.44 millioncubic metre.

Last year, the live water stock available across thesedams in Kolhapur, Pune, Sangli, Satara and Solapur was 13.18per cent.

Dimbhe, Pimpalgaon Joge and Wadaj dams in Pune, whichhad recorded zero per cent live water stock last season, areall relatively better placed this year, according to the data.

The Bhima (Ujjani) project in Solapur has no livestock left this year like the previous one. ENMNP NP