Aware of the grim water situation facing the city, Metrowater has initiated about a dozen measures, including erection of new borewells with power pumps, setting up additional filling points and extending operation of tanker lorries. The most serious problem surrounds the level of water in the reservoirs at Poondi, Cholavaram, Red Hills and Chembarambakkam.

Cholavaram, the smallest with a total capacity of 1,081 million cubic feet, on Friday had a mere 9 million cubic feet of water. Officials had stopped the drawing from its dead storage level since a few days ago, said Metrowater executive director T Prabhushankar.

A visit by TOI showed cattle grazing on a large swathe of the lake bed.

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