Chandigarh, June 10 -- The Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) on Tuesday advised its partner states to increase water withdrawal from the Bhakra and Pong reservoirs to help regulate water levels and avert a potential crisis during the upcoming monsoon and snowmelt season in the catchment areas. Following the BBMB's advisory, which oversees the operation of the two dams - Bhakra on Sutlej and Pong on the Beas river - and the canal system, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan revised their water requisitions to 25,000 cusecs, 10,100 cusecs and 12,500 cusecs, respectively-nearly double their earlier demand. The BBMB is concerned about the higher-than-desired storage levels in both dam reservoirs. According to BBMB officials, the Bhakra's water level was at 1,578 ft against the ideal level of around 1,500 ft at the same time of the year, while Pong stood at 1328.34 ft compared to the preferred 1,300 ft.Current water inflows into the Bhakra and Pong reservoirs are at 13,748 cusecs and 1,986 cusecs, respectively. "We are making best efforts to regulate the water levels in the two dams so that any crisis in the monsoon can be averted," BBMB chairman Manoj Tripathi said. He added that the partner states have been asked to draw water to their maximum capacity, and they have accepted the suggestion. "We are very optimistic that there will not be any problem in the coming monsoon season," he said. The increased water allocation to the partner states will support paddy cultivation and meet drinking water needs. However, the allocation for the national capital Delhi will remain the same - 496 cusecs, which, as per the agreement, Haryana supplies from its share. The caution comes against the backdrop of devastating floods in Punjab during the 2023 and 2025 monsoon seasons, triggered by unprecedented rains and cloudbursts in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir that forced the authorities to release excess water from the dams.The Punjab government had then blamed BBMB for failing to regulate water in Bhakra, alleging that the opening of the spillway gates led to floods downstream. Several petitions were also filed in the Punjab and Haryana high court against the BBMB over the handling of the situation. The Board, however, has maintained that reservoir operations are carried out according to the prescribed rule curve, based on analysis of dams' levels, inflows and outflows. A senior BBMB official said the current strategy of increasing water releases will help in regulating water levels during the dam filling season, starting with the monsoon and the melting of snow in the higher reaches of the Himalayas. "We expect the dam levels to rise suddenly once the rainfall and melting of snow begin," the official said, requesting anonymity. The Board is particularly concerned because the reservoir levels are higher despite lower inflows than last year, and forecasts are predicting a below-normal monsoon. "The Bhakra reservoir spreads over 68 square kilometres, and the Sutlej catchment area covers nearly 58,000 square kilometres. Any cloudburst activity in the catchment region can result in a sudden rise in the reservoir level and create a flood threat downstream," the official added. The Board has also commissioned an emergency safety study after detecting that the main wall of the Bhakra dam is tilting outward beyond permissible limits. Chairman Tripathi said the permissible deflection of the wall under ideal conditions is 1.03 inches, while the dam is experiencing a continuous tilt of 1.77 inches. He, however, ruled out any immediate cause for concern....