Mumbai rains: Lake levels rise to 92 per cent after heavy showers

A view of Vihar lake on August 2, 2019. Pic/ Ranjeet Jadhav

The heavy and continuous downpour over the past few days increased the city's water stock to 13,25,904 million litres. According to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) data, the total water stock in the seven lakes that supply drinking water to Mumbai is at 91.61 per cent.

The water levels in the lakes rose steadily after heavy showers hit Mumbai and nearby areas in the past few days. The current water level as on August 4 showed a steady rise in the lakes and reservoirs, the level in Modak Sagar at 163.36 metres crossed the full capacity level of 163.15 metres. In Upper Vaitarna water level stood at 602.68 metres (627.97 metres full capacity).

Lake level chart. Source: BMC

At 282.50 metres the water level in Middle Vaitarna is expected to hit the full capacity of 285 metres in the next few spells of rain. The water level in Tansa lake currently stands at 128.72 metres (128.63 is the full level). Vihar Lake has also overflowed and the current capacity is at 80.86 metres. The current water level in Bhatsa is 138.97 metres, just a few metres away from the full capacity of 142.07 metres and Tulsi Lake has crossed the overflow mark of 139.17 metres, as per BMC data.

Also Read: Mumbai: Heavy rain to continue today, holiday for schools, colleges

On Sunday, the Santacruz observatory of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai recorded 2374.2 mm of cumulative rainfall since June 1 in Mumbai, which is above the season total of 2317.1 mm. After the slow start in June, monsoon picked up in July and August in Mumbai and surrounding areas.

The civic body had imposed a 10 per cent cut in supply of water and 15 per cent in timings since November 2018 after water stock in the lakes had depleted earlier due to insufficient rainfall in the catchment areas last year. The civic body in July this year decided to withdraw the water cut after reviewing the water stocks in all the seven lakes and sufficient rainfall.

Also Read: Mumbai Rains: Stay at home today, says IMD

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