As of mid-June 2026, India's monitored reservoirs are holding only about 35% of their usable capacity — and that is not, by itself, alarming. June is when Indian reservoirs sit at their annual low, drawn down through the long dry season and waiting on the southwest monsoon that arrives over the country through June, July and August. More than 100 of the roughly 300 reservoirs we track are below 20% full right now. The driest states are Himachal Pradesh and Telangana, and the lowest big reservoirs are on the Cauvery and Krishna in the south — Krishnaraja Sagar and Tungabhadra. The live national figure and the state map are on the India reservoir levels page. This is the June edition of a monthly check-in; the story over the next two months is whether the monsoon refills on schedule.
Key takeaways
- India's reservoirs are at 35% of usable capacity (mid-June 2026) — the seasonal floor, not a verdict. The southwest monsoon normally refills them from June to September, so June is the annual low by design. The live figure is on the India page.
- More than 100 of the 300 tracked reservoirs are below 20% full — the critical band — which is typical for this point in the year across the Deccan and the north.
- The driest states are Himachal Pradesh (17%) and Telangana (19%), followed by Karnataka, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh.
- Tamil Nadu is the fullest major state (76%) — it runs on the northeast monsoon (October–December), so its cycle is out of step with the rest of the country.
- The big southern reservoirs are lowest: Krishnaraja Sagar (7%), Tungabhadra (9%) and Malaprabha (6%) on the Cauvery–Krishna systems. The country's largest, Indira Sagar on the Narmada, is around 21%.
Where India's reservoir data comes from
India's authoritative source is the Central Water Commission (CWC), which publishes a weekly Reservoir Storage Bulletin tracking the country's major reservoirs against their full reservoir level (FRL) and against the last ten years' average. reservoirs.earth mirrors that bulletin and overlays several live state portals — Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Bihar — so the most-watched reservoirs refresh more often than weekly. The latest reading in this snapshot is 18 June 2026. India scores reasonably well for openness on the Reservoir Transparency Index precisely because the CWC bulletin is public and regular; each reservoir keeps its own page with the latest reading and multi-year history on the India page.
The national picture
The reservoirs we track hold a combined usable capacity of roughly 196 km³ (196 billion m³). As of 18 June 2026 they were storing about 69 km³ — close to 35% of usable capacity, as a capacity-weighted average across the reservoirs with a live reading. That number is low because of when it is, not (mostly) because of drought: India's storage is drawn down every year through the pre-monsoon summer and refilled by the rains.
The split across the country is stark, and it tracks the monsoon calendar:
- The north — fed by Himalayan snowmelt and the monsoon — is low: Bhakra / Gobind Sagar on the Sutlej is around 30% and Pong on the Beas around 35%, which is why Himachal Pradesh sits lowest of all the big states.
- The Deccan south — Karnataka and Telangana — holds the most depleted large reservoirs, waiting on the monsoon's westerly branch.
- The west and centre are in better shape: Gujarat (62%), anchored by Sardar Sarovar (48%), and Madhya Pradesh (52%), with Gandhi Sagar on the Chambal around 62%.
Why June is the low point — and why we'll track it monthly
India's water year runs on one event: the southwest monsoon. It reaches Kerala around the start of June, then advances north and west to cover the whole country by mid-July, and withdraws in September. Roughly three-quarters of India's annual rainfall — and almost all of its reservoir refill — comes in those four months. So a reservoir at 10% in June is usually a reservoir that did its job over the dry season and is now waiting to be topped up, not one in permanent trouble.
That is exactly why a single June reading says little on its own, and why this is a monthly series. The number that matters is the trajectory: how fast storage climbs from this floor as the monsoon advances through July and August, and whether any region is left behind by a weak or delayed monsoon. The multi-year chart on each reservoir's page (and the national page) is built for that comparison.
The driest states
Ranked by capacity-weighted fill (states with several sizeable reservoirs), as of mid-June 2026:
- Himachal Pradesh — 17%. The big northern storages Bhakra / Gobind Sagar and Pong are drawn down ahead of the snowmelt-and-monsoon refill.
- Telangana — 19%. Krishna and Godavari reservoirs including Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar sit near their pre-monsoon floor.
- Karnataka — 34%. Home to the most depleted big reservoirs in the country: Krishnaraja Sagar, Tungabhadra, Malaprabha and Linganamakki.
- Odisha — 35% and Uttar Pradesh — 37%. Odisha's Hirakud on the Mahanadi and UP's Rihand are both well drawn down.
At the other end, Tamil Nadu is the fullest major state (76%) because it depends on the northeast monsoon late in the year, so it enters the summer with more in the bank than the rest of the country.
The reservoirs running lowest
The large reservoirs (capacity above 1 km³) holding the least relative to capacity, as of mid-June 2026. Each links to its live page with the latest reading and history:
- Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) — Cauvery, Karnataka. 7%. The reservoir at the centre of the Karnataka–Tamil Nadu Cauvery dispute, and a key supply for Bengaluru and Mysuru.
- Tungabhadra — Karnataka/Andhra Pradesh. 9%.
- Malaprabha — Karnataka. 6%.
- Linganamakki — Sharavathi, Karnataka. 13% — a major hydropower reservoir.
- Koyna — Maharashtra. 11% — one of the state's most important hydro reservoirs.
- Hirakud — Mahanadi, Odisha. 19% — one of the longest dams in the world.
- Indira Sagar — Narmada, Madhya Pradesh. 21% — India's largest reservoir by capacity.
These are seasonal lows: most of these reservoirs refill substantially once the monsoon's westerly branch reaches the Western Ghats and the Deccan. The risk is concentrated where the monsoon arrives late or weak — which is the thing to watch in the July and August editions.
What "% full" means here
A reservoir's level is reported as a percentage of its full reservoir level (FRL) — the volume it holds when filled to its design level. So 9% full means it is holding 9% of its design storage. Two cautions specific to India:
- The June number is the seasonal floor, not a steady state. Compare it to the same month in previous years (on each reservoir's chart), not to a winter or post-monsoon figure.
- Coverage is partial by design. The CWC bulletin and state portals track the major reservoirs — the ones that carry the national picture — not every minor tank and check dam. The national figure is a capacity-weighted average of the reservoirs with a live reading.
Why India's reservoir levels matter
India is the world's most populous country and one of its largest irrigated-agriculture economies, and its reservoirs do three jobs at once: irrigate the post-monsoon (rabi) crop, supply cities and industry, and generate hydropower. The pre-monsoon low is when those demands compete hardest — which is why the Cauvery and Krishna reservoirs become political (the Krishnaraja Sagar–Tamil Nadu water-sharing dispute flares almost every dry season) and why a delayed monsoon is a national-economy story, not just a weather one. Tracking the refill, reservoir by reservoir, is the clearest early read on how the year will go.
FAQ
What is the current reservoir level in India? Across the 300 major reservoirs we track, storage was about 35% of usable capacity as of 18 June 2026 — near the annual pre-monsoon low. It changes weekly; the live figure and the state map are on the India page.
Why are Indian reservoirs so low in June? Because June is the end of the dry season, just before the southwest monsoon refills them. India gets roughly three-quarters of its rain — and almost all its reservoir refill — between June and September, so storage bottoms out in late May/June every year.
Which Indian state has the least water in its reservoirs? By capacity-weighted fill, Himachal Pradesh (17%) and Telangana (19%) are lowest, followed by Karnataka. Tamil Nadu is the fullest major state because it relies on the later northeast monsoon.
Which Indian reservoir is the most depleted? Among large reservoirs, Krishnaraja Sagar on the Cauvery (7%) and Malaprabha (6%) in Karnataka are at the bottom, with Tungabhadra (9%) close behind.
Where does the data come from? The Central Water Commission (CWC) weekly Reservoir Storage Bulletin, supplemented by live state portals (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Bihar). reservoirs.earth mirrors these and adds multi-year history on the India page.
When will the reservoirs refill? Through the monsoon — typically July to September. Watch the trajectory in next month's edition: the speed of the climb from this floor is the real signal.
This is the June 2026 edition. We track the major water economies month by month — see the United States edition, and follow the monsoon refill on the India reservoir levels page and the Reservoir Transparency Index.