Water Stock in Dams and Reservoirs Drops to 75 Percent

09-Jan-2026 11:14 AM

New Delhi. Due to a lack of rainfall in most parts of the country and continued water withdrawal, the water level in dams and reservoirs is continuously decreasing.

Since the beginning of the current year, 80 percent of the country has not received any rainfall, resulting in the water stock in 166 major dams and reservoirs falling to 75.6 percent of their total storage capacity. In South India, the water level has dropped even below last year's level.

According to a new report by the Central Water Commission (CWC), the total water stock in dams and reservoirs at the national level is 138.832 billion cubic meters (BCM), while the total storage capacity is 183.565 BCM. The current water level is 6 percentage points higher than last year and 22 percent higher than the ten-year average.

South India primarily depends on the Northeast monsoon rains, which begin in October. During December 2025, this monsoon did not bring the expected rainfall, leading to a decline in water levels there.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), during the first 8 days of 2026, 80 percent of the 723 districts in the country received no rainfall at all, while another 12 percent received very little or negligible rainfall. In North India, rainfall is now needed for the irrigation of Rabi crops.

In South India, except for Andhra Pradesh, the water levels in the dams of other states have fallen below last year's levels.

In the 47 dams and reservoirs there, a total of 39.057 BCM of water is available, which is 70.6 percent of its total storage capacity of 55.287 BCM. Last year, it was 73 percent or 40.392 BCM.