In a challenging scenario, Mumbai’s reserved water quota plays a crucial role in ensuring adequate water supply for the city. Without the utilisation of this quota, the lake levels would have plummeted to a mere 7 per cent. Presently, the lake levels stand below 9 per cent. However, with the reserved quota, the water quantity has reached 16 per cent of the total storage capacity of the lakes, potentially sustaining the city until the end of July. The final decision on water cuts will be determined by the progress of the monsoon and lake levels by the end of June.

The significance of the reserved quota becomes apparent when considering the possibility of a delayed monsoon, which would have resulted in the imposition of water cuts, as seen in previous years. Fortunately, the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) obtained permission to utilise 75,000 million litres of water from both the Upper Vaitarna and Bhatsa dams. The BMC has already used 28,182 million litres from the reserved quota of Upper Vaitarna. Currently, the city receives a daily water supply of 3,850 million litres, and 28,182 million litres are equivalent to a 7-day supply.