Lakes got 5.36 lakh million litres of water in July

Owing to the heavy rainfall throughout the month, more than 5.36 lakh million litres (ml) of water stock has been added collectively to the six lakes supplying water to the city.

Owing to the heavy rainfall throughout the month, more than 5.36 lakh million litres (ml) of water stock has been added collectively to the six lakes supplying water to the city.

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There was 6,780 mm of rainfall in catchment areas of lakes during the month of July as against the not-so-adequate 2,511 mm of rainfall in June.

The total water stock in six lakes — Modak Sagar, Tansa, Vihar, Tulsi, Upper Vaitarana and Bhatsa — was 1,69,042 ml on July 30, which rose to 7,05,543 ml on July 31 due to the consistent rainfall in catchment areas. The total quantity of water has increased by more than 5.36 lakh ml since June-end.

For sufficient water supply throughout the year, the city needs a total of 13 lakh million litres of water in the six lakes. “We have almost reached the 50% mark. Considering that we have another month of monsoon left, we are hopeful that the water stocks will increase steadily,” said Ramesh Bamble, chief hydraulic engineer, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

The 7.05 lakh ml water stock is sufficient to cater to the city’s need for the next 210 days, that is more than seven months.

Of the six lakes, Tulsi and Modak Sagar lakes have already started overflowing, while Vihar lake is on the verge of crossing the overflow mark.