Water levels in Karnataka’s Cauvery Basin have experienced a significant drop, decreasing from nearly full capacity to just 60%, raising concerns about water security as the summer approaches. According to the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Centre (KSNDMC), the four major reservoirs in the basin — Harangi, Hemavathi, Kabini, and Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) — are currently holding less than 70% of their total storage capacity. Harangi has 45%, Hemavathi holds 57%, Kabini is at 78%, and KRS, an essential reservoir for Bengaluru, is also at 78%.
Together, these reservoirs have a total capacity of 114.57 TMC, but they are currently holding 78.34 TMC of water. Experts predict that water levels will continue to decline in the coming days, with evaporation due to high temperatures contributing to further depletion. Dr. GS Srinivas Reddy, former director of KSNDMC, emphasized the need for careful water management, warning that if the remaining water is not used wisely, there could be severe scarcity during the summer months.
According to Dr. Reddy, the reservoirs will require at least 16 TMC of water over the next four months to meet the drinking water needs of major cities and over 625 villages in the basin, with Bengaluru alone needing 8 TMC. Experts also point out that evaporation, driven by temperatures ranging from 32°C to 35°C, could lead to an additional loss of 0.7 meters of water in the coming months. With evaporation rates at 6mm per day, this loss could further exacerbate the situation.
Despite the current concerns, water levels in Karnataka’s reservoirs are better than last year. The total storage in the 11 major reservoirs is currently at 538.95 TMC, compared to 333.82 TMC at the same time last year. In the Cauvery Basin, the storage is 78.34 TMC, up from 46.08 TMC last year, offering some relief but underscoring the need for prudent water usage to avoid a crisis.
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