Mumbai lakes hold 95.22 per cent water stock, two reservoirs remain at full

Mumbai's seven lakes, which supply drinking water to the city, collectively held 13,78,143 million litres of water, or 95.22 per cent of their total live storage capacity, as of 6 am on Sunday, August 23, according to the Hydraulic Engineer's Department at the Bhandup Master Control Centre. 

The current stock now stands lower than in the same period last year, when the reservoirs contained 13,85,750 million litres (95.74 per cent). However, the lake levels remained higher than in 2024, when the lakes had 13,714,617 million litres, accounting for 94.97 per cent of the total live storage. 

Vehar and Modak Sagar lakes remain full

Among the seven reservoirs, Vehar and Modak Sagar lakes remained at 100 per cent live storage. Whereas the water levels at Tulsi stood at 99.35, Tansa at 98.34 per cent, Middle Vaitarna was at 95.29 per cent, Bhatsa, the city's largest reservoir at 95.14 per cent, while Upper Vaitarna remained the lowest-filled lake at 89.32 per cent.

The current storage in individual lakes is as follows:

• Upper Vaitarna: 2,02,796 million litres (89.32 per cent)
• Modak Sagar: 1,28,925 million litres (100.00 per cent)
• Tansa: 1,44,122 million litres (99.34 per cent)
• Middle Vaitarna: 1,84,414 million litres (95.29 per cent)
• Bhatsa: 6,82,194 million litres (95.14 per cent)
• Vehar: 27,698 million litres (100 per cent)
• Tulsi: 7,994 million litres (99.35 per cent)

Light showers continued across the lake catchment areas over the past 24 hours, with Upper Vaitarna receiving the highest rainfall of 45 mm.

Other rainfall recorded at the reservoirs includes:

• Modak Sagar- 20 mm
• Middle Vaitarna – 16 mm
• Tulsi – 22 mm
• Tansa – 14 mm
• Bhatsa – 19 mm
• Vehar- 9 mm

The Bhandup Complex recorded significant rainfall during the last 24 hours, taking its cumulative seasonal rainfall to 2,689 mm.

Monsoon rainfall so far

The cumulative rainfall recorded at the reservoirs this monsoon is:

• Upper Vaitarna – 3,580 mm
• Modak Sagar – 2,990 mm
• Tansa – 2,707 mm
• Middle Vaitarna – 2,644 mm
• Bhatsa – 2,474 mm
• Tulsi – 3,482 mm
• Vehar – 2,489 mm

Reservoirs at their full capacity

The report stated that Vehar Lake has been overflowing since July 7. However, the capacity of Tansa Dam has decreased, which had been overflowing till Saturday. On the other hand, the water level of Modak Sagar Dam has also decreased marginally on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Middle Vaitarna WSCPO gate remains closed, and the release of water from Upper Vaitarna has remained suspended since July 6, according to the Hydraulic Engineer's Department.

* This article was originally published here