With the onset of the summer sowing season, the central water commission (CWC) under the ministry of water resources is monitoring storage situation of 81 important reservoirs spread all over the country.

Of these, 36 reservoirs have significant hydropower capacity with installed power generation capacity of over 60 MW each. The combined live storage in these 81 reservoirs at the beginning of monsoon ie 1 June 2007, which was 25 per cent of the combined designed capacity, had risen to 41 per cent as on 28 February 2008.

The storage is currently estimated at 89 per cent of the last year's storage and 117 per cent of the last 10 years' average storage during the same period.

Of the 81 reservoirs, 14 reservoirs have storage of 80 per cent or below the average of the previous 10 years. In the remaining 67 reservoirs the storage exceeds 80 per cent of the average of previous 10 years' storage.

In order to derive the best possible benefits from the available water, central water commission is keeping in touch with the department of agriculture and co-operation and providing information of the weekly storage position to the crop weather watch group for evolving suitable crop strategies and also appraising the situation to various departments and ministries involved in water resources planning.

The storage position in 10 major storage basins - Ganga, Narmada, Mahi, Sabarmati, Krishna, Godavari, Tapi, Kutch, Cauvery and neighbouring east flowing rivers and west flowing rivers in the south is better than the average of the previous 10 years. Mahanadi and neighbouring east flowing rivers and Indus are flowing deficient.

Out of 36 reservoirs with significant hydro potential, 14 reservoirs have a storage build up of less than the average of the last 10 years' capacity.