Nashik: The district administration has ruled out releasing water from dams for any religious purpose, including the Dhwajarohan (flag-hoisting) ceremony of Simhastha Kumbh Mela scheduled on Oct 31, saying existing govt rules do not permit such a move.
The issue came up during an Oct 16 meeting of Nashik Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Mela Authority (NTKMA), chaired by Kumbh Mela minister Girish Mahajan. Officials discussed concerns over sewage flowing into Godavari river, the dry Ramkund, and the Aruna-Godavari confluence, where water levels have been affected largely due to ongoing construction activities.
“While the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) has been asked to ensure the drainage is not released into Godavari and to clear stagnant water from the affected areas, the need to maintain at least two feet of water at these locations also came up for discussion,” a senior NTKMA officer said. “Against the backdrop of the drought , a meeting will be held with the water resources department to assess the situation and take a call,” he said. Addressing reporters on Sunday, NTKMA commissioner Shekhar Singh said a meeting with the water resources department (WRD) would be held soon to assess the situation.
Reservoirs across Nashik district currently hold 67 TMC of water, or about 95% of total capacity, compared to 92.5% during the same period last year, according to the district administration. In the Gangapur dam complex, storage stands at 9.9 TMC, or 96.5% of capacity, against 98.8% last year.
Since the govt resolution does not allow the release of water for this purpose, we cannot release it,” Prasad said. Despite healthy reservoir levels, officials said the drought situation cannot be assessed solely by storage figures. A senior district official said the drought declaration was driven more by rainfall distribution and groundwater depletion than by the total volume of water stored in dams.
However, collector Ayush Prasad made it clear that releasing water for religious events was not an option under the current policy framework. “We have not received any such demand from NTKMA.