Water level 53% below normal in Punjab dams

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 25

The water level in major reservoirs across the northern region remains low this year, with the present storage being 53 per cent below normal in Punjab and 25 per cent below normal in HP.

The current water level in the Thein Dam reservoir on the Ravi in Punjab is 498.35 m against the upper limit of 527.91 m with the available storage being 0.567 billion cubic meters (BCM), according to the data released by the Central Water Commission (CWC) yesterday. This means the available storage at Thein is only 24 per cent of its total capacity. The figure was 69 per cent at this time last year, while the average storage during the past 10 years was 52 per cent.

At Bhakra Dam on the Sutlej in Himachal Pradesh, the water level was 492.40 m against the maximum of 512.06 m, with the water holding being 2.898 BCM. This implies the current storage is 47 per cent, against last year’s 67 per cent and 10-year average of 69 per cent.

Pong Dam on the Beas in Himachal recorded the water level at 410.62 m against the maximum of 423.67 m. The current storage of 3.012 BCM is 49 per cent of its total capacity, which was 72 per cent last year and average 58 per cent over the past 10 years.