Water Storage in Dams and Reservoirs Below 60 Percent

27-Feb-2026 11:47 AM

New Delhi: Water storage in the country’s major dams and reservoirs continues to decline due to significantly lower winter rainfall and ongoing water withdrawals. The falling water levels could become a serious concern.

According to the latest weekly report of the Central Water Commission, water levels in 166 major dams and reservoirs have fallen to below 60 percent of total storage capacity, with more than 28 percent of reservoirs holding less than 50 percent water.

As per the Meteorological Department, winter rainfall from January 1 to February 25 was 58 percent below the national average, resulting in very limited inflows into reservoirs. During this period, rainfall deficiency was highest in the eastern and northeastern regions at 90 percent, followed by the central region at 77 percent below normal.

The Commission’s report states that the total storage capacity of these 166 reservoirs is 183.565 billion cubic meters (BCM), while the current storage stands at 108.338 BCM, or about 59 percent of capacity.

However, the present water level is still 12 percentage points higher than the same period last year and 25 percentage points higher than the ten-year average.

Water levels in all five regions of the country have fallen below 70 percent of capacity. Only three reservoirs currently have adequate water storage, compared with four reservoirs last week.