Mumbai's Water Security In Focus As Corporators Push To Desilt 7 Reservoirs & Boost Storage

Mumbai: Mumbai’s seven drinking water reservoirs could regain crucial storage capacity through desilting, with corporators arguing that even a 4% increase in water stock could provide the city with 15 additional days of supply. During a recent meeting of the BMC’s Standing Committee, corporators called for a systematic desilting programme, saying even a modest increase in reserves could offer some relief during water shortages.

Standing Committee chairman Prabhakar Shinde demanded that these lakes be desilted every five to 10 years, preferably before the monsoon, to prevent silt accumulation from eating into their storage capacity. However, the BMC administration said it would decide on desilting after examining the findings of a state government pilot project at seven major irrigation projects.

Leader of the House and BJP corporator Ganesh Khankar, meanwhile, flagged evaporation as a major threat to Mumbai’s water reserves and urged the civic body to explore desilting as a means of strengthening the city’s water security.

He proposed a pilot project at the relatively smaller Vihar and Tulsi lakes before extending the exercise to the other reservoirs.

Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Yashodhar Phanse proposed referring the matter back to the BMC administration for further consideration, while Congress corporator Tulip Miranda demanded the appointment of a consultant to study silt accumulation and recommend suitable desilting measures. Backing the demand for expert intervention, Shinde said a consultant should assess the feasibility of desilting in view of Mumbai’s water requirements. He cited estimates suggesting that silt accounts for nearly 10–14% of the reservoirs’ capacity, arguing that removing it could help augment storage and provide a buffer against future water shortages.

However, the extent of capacity loss varies considerably across the reservoirs, according to surveys conducted by the Maharashtra Engineering Research Institute (MERI). Following Central Water Commission (CWC) guidelines, the BMC appointed MERI to conduct silt surveys of its reservoirs.

The surveys recorded storage-capacity declines of 16.42% at Vihar, 14.98% at Tulsi, 15.023% at Tansa, 8.986% at Modak Sagar and 1.709% at Middle Vaitarna. The corresponding annual declines were estimated at 0.100%, 0.104%, 0.116%, 0.128% and 0.244%, respectively.

The BMC administration said it had sought a panel of consultants recommended by the CWC to assess the need for and feasibility of desilting the reservoirs.

Following the discussion, the proposal was referred back to the administration for consideration.

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