Pune: Water Reservoirs In Pune Show Progress

Date:4/July/2024.

The water stock in the four dams in the Khadakwasla circle has risen to 4.8 TMC, which is about 16.5% of the total storage capacity. This increase is due to ongoing rainfall in the catchment areas. Currently, the live storage of water is adequate to meet the city’s water needs for at least three months. The Pune Municipal Corporation extracts around 15 TMC of water from the Khadakwasla circle each month.

The water supply department of the civic body has postponed the decision on implementing water cuts in Pune for a few more days. Officials suggest that immediate water cuts are unlikely as the water stock is steadily being replenished. The four reservoirs in the circle  Khadakwasla, Temghar, Panshet, and Varasgaon dams play a crucial role in supplying water to the city after receiving good rainfall.

State irrigation department officials mentioned that the dams collectively received over 1 TMC of water in the past week alone, mainly due to heavy showers. Temghar recorded 96 mm of rainfall, while Panshet and Varasgaon received around 60 mm each, and Khadakwasla got 6 mm of rainfall in a 24 hour period ending on Wednesday morning.

Even though the water levels in the dams have increased, the total stock in all four reservoirs is still lower than last year’s stock of 5.7 TMC recorded on the same day (July 3). Initially, there was a deficit of about 2 TMC at the start of the monsoon season, but it has now reduced to 1 TMC. The water levels are being monitored daily, and while there has been improvement, the stock situation has not yet reached a comfortable level, as mentioned by an irrigation official.

Civic officials have indicated that due to the consistent rise in water levels in the dams, a decision on implementing water cuts may be made in the coming days. They are coordinating closely with the irrigation department to assess the potential increase in water stock and rainfall in the catchment areas.

Joyville