10 August,2026 07:15 PM IST | Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar | mid-day online correspondent
The average water storage in 11 mega irrigation projects in the central Maharashtra region stands at 67.65 per cent. Representational Pic
Water storage in small and medium irrigation projects in Maharashtra's Marathwada region remains below 45 per cent of their combined capacity, even as nearly half of August has passed and only 50 days remain for the monsoon season to end, according to an official report.
The semi-arid region, comprising Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Jalna, Beed, Nanded, Parbhani, Latur, Hingoli and Dharashiv districts, has 76 medium and 778 small irrigation projects built on various rivers.
The 76 medium projects have a combined storage capacity of 958.4 million cubic metres (MCM).
As of August 7, they held 207 MCM of water, accounting for just 21.60 per cent of their overall capacity, according to a report from the Divisional Commissioner's office in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
The 778 small irrigation projects in the region have a combined storage capacity of 1,691.5 MCM. As of August 7, they held 295.9 MCM of water, which is only 17.50 per cent of their total capacity, the report stated.
The 15 barrages on the Godavari River have a combined storage capacity of 348.2 MCM. Their current storage stands at 158.9 MCM, or 45.66 per cent of capacity.
However, the situation is significantly worse for the 35 barrages on the Terna and Manjara rivers, which supply water to Latur, Dharashiv and parts of Beed.
These barrages have stored only 6.3 MCM of water, or 8.3 per cent of their total capacity of 77.5 MCM, the report stated.
The average water storage in 11 mega irrigation projects in the central Maharashtra region stands at 67.65 per cent.
However, the Sina Kolegaon project in Dharashiv district has recorded zero water storage, according to the report.
Jayakwadi, at 93.66 per cent, and Vishnupuri, at 95.20 per cent, are the only projects in the region with water storage exceeding 90 per cent of their capacity.
The region has received 352.9 mm of rainfall since June 1, which is 92.2 per cent of the expected 382.6 mm, according to another report.
Rainfall has been below normal in Parbhani, which has received 76.7 per cent of its expected rainfall, and Latur, which has received 67.7 per cent.
Only two districts, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (113.4 per cent) and Jalna (109.5 per cent), have received rainfall above their expected average, the report added.
