Mumbai: The driest August has added only 15% to the stock in the seven lakes that supply water to the city. Currently, the city has a total water stock of around 13 lakh million litres (ML), while it requires 14.47 lakh ML by October 1 to be sufficient for the entire year. Civic authorities will review the situation next week to decide on water cuts.
A 10% water cut imposed on July 1 was lifted on August 9 after the catchment areas of the lakes received heavy rainfall. Modak Sagar, Tansa, Vihar, and Tulsi lakes started overflowing in the last week of July. While all the lakes had a total water stock of 75% on July 31, the month of August recorded only 177 mm of rainfall, which is the second lowest in the past 10 years. Additionally, there is less hope of heavy rainfall in September, which has now raised concerns among civic authorities.
IMD: No heavy rainfall in the next 10 days
"As per the Indian Meteorological Department, there will be no heavy rainfall in the next 10 days. We need 14.47 lakh ML in the lakes by October 1. In the current situation with no expected rainfall, we are supplying 3,900 ML of water daily. This means that if there is no rainfall this month and the lakes remain at 90% of capacity, we will have to impose 10-15% water cuts throughout the year. However, we have decided to wait for one more week. A review will be conducted on September 10 to decide on the water cut," said a senior civic official. P. Velrasu, additional municipal commissioner (projects), said, "There are no immediate plans for water cuts."
Water stock in three years on September 1 (figures in million litres):
Year Water Stock Percentage
2023 13.11 90%
2022 14.12 97%
2021 12.93 89%
Water Stock (ML) and % Content:
Upper Vaitarna: 1,77,978 (78.39%)
Modak Sagar: 1,25,735 (97.53%)
Tansa: 1,43,593 (98.97%)
Middle Vaitarna: 1,88,119 (97.20%)
Bhatsa: 6,40,088 (89.27%)
Vihar: 27,698 (100%)
Tulsi: 8,027 (99.77%)"
