Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Sep 7 (PTI) Irrigation reservoirs with low storage in Maharashtra’s Marathwada region will be reserved for drinking water supply, a senior official said on Monday.
Since June 1, the region’s eight districts have received 388.3 mm of rainfall against the normal 552.2 mm — a deficit of 29.7 per cent. In September so far, only 5.2 mm of rain has fallen, just 14 per cent of the expected 38.7 mm.
Rainfall in Latur and Parbhani districts is below 60 per cent of normal, at 57.3 per cent and 54.6 per cent respectively, as per official data.
The administration has begun managing available water in irrigation projects of the region.
“The available water resources will be kept fully reserved for drinking purposes and no planning for the upcoming Rabi season will be undertaken. We will decide on planning for the next season after September,” Divisional Commissioner G Shreekant told reporters.
“Water from dams like Manjara, Makhni, which have low storage, has now been reserved for drinking purposes only,” he added.
Patrol parties have been deployed around these water sources, and pumps used to illegally lift water will be seized, the official said.
There are 11 major irrigation projects in the Marathwada region. This year, their combined water storage stands at 123.32 TMC — 67.73 per cent of total capacity — compared to 176.30 TMC, or 96.82 per cent, on the same day last year, according to a report from the divisional commissioner’s office.
The situation is critical in several projects. The Sina Kolegaon project in Dharashiv, with a capacity of 3.15 TMC, has zero storage. The Manjara dam in Beed, which supplies water to Latur, holds only 12.26 per cent of its capacity. The Nimna Dudhna project in Parbhani district has also reported low storage.
Last year, the Nimna Dudhna project had 74.67 per cent storage on the same day; this year, it has dropped to just 22.49 per cent, as per official data. PTI AW GK
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.