Chandigarh, Sept. 5 -- Water level in the Bhakra reservoir would have come down by about five feet, thus creating space for the upcoming monsoon deluge, had the Punjab government agreed to the release of 4,500 cusecs of additional water from Bhakra dam to neighbouring Haryana for eight days (from April 24 to May 1), according to the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) data.

Board statistics showed that the water level in the Bhakra reservoir on April 23 when a technical committee of the BBMB met to deliberate the availability of water for the depletion period (Sept 2024-May 2025) and decided that Haryana be provided 8,500 cusecs (4,000 cusecs + additional 4,500 cusecs) of water for eight days, was 1,555 feet and the storage was 1.3 billi...