Lake levels in Mumbai touch 91.53%

As heavy rain lashed the city and its surrounding areas — Thane, Palghar and Nashik – on Saturday, the useful water stock in the seven lakes supplying water to

As heavy rain lashed the city and its surrounding areas — Thane, Palghar and Nashik – on Saturday, the useful water stock in the seven lakes supplying water to Mumbai rose to 91.53%, or 13.24 lakh million litres. While Modak Sagar, Vihar, Tansa and Tulsi have overflowed, the spillway gates of Bhatsa, Middle Vaitarna and Upper Vaitarna have been opened.

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According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corpoation’s (BMC) hydraulic engineering department, the useful water content of the city’s lakes on Saturday was at a three-year high for August 3. The stock stood at 12.08 lakh million litres, or 83.50%, of the total capacity (14.47 lakh million litres) on August 3, 2018 — 1.16 lakh million litres less than the stock on Saturday.

The stock was 86.07%, or 12.45 lakh million litres, on August 3, 2017.

Ashok Kumar Tawadiya, deputy municipal commissioner, hydraulic engineering department, said, “Upper Vaitarna is located in Nashik district, Middle Vaitarna in Palghar, Modak Sagar, Tansa and Bhatsa in Thane district. Upper Vaitarna supplies water to Middle Vaitarna which then supplies water to Modak Sagar owing to the gravitational pull. Tansa lies parallel to the Vaitarna water system. So good rain in these regions has led to a drastic rise in the water level of the lakes. In the past three years, this is the first time that the average water stock in the seven lakes has gone above 90% in the beginning of August.”

While Bhatsa makes up for 50% of the water supply to the city, Middle Vaitarna, Upper Vaitarna and Modak Sagar together make up for 37% of the water supply; Tansa makes up for 10%; Vihar 25%; and Tulsi 1%.