Water crisis in Gurgaon, DLF Phases 1 & 2 face low pressure, tankers called in

“The first two days, there was little to no water supply. Since the last two days, we have been receiving low-pressure supply. We have stopped washing clothes,” said Handa, also the vice-president of the A Block RWA.

For larger families, she said, even the tankers being supplied by DLF aren’t enough. Private tanker operators, meanwhile, have more than doubled their rates – from around Rs 1,200 to over Rs 3,000, she added.

The situation is similar in DLF Phase 2. K Block resident Ajay Kumar said there was no water supply throughout Thursday.

Another resident of the same block, Kunal Sharma, added, “It’s has been three days. People are suffering.”

In neighbouring high-rises such as Silver Oaks in DLF Phase 1, home to around 700 families, residents reported near-empty underground reservoirs. They said they had been forced to buy packaged drinking water while relying on costly private tankers for basic sanitation.

In response, DLF City’s Head of Facilities, Nitya Mohan, said the company has instructed security personnel to take appropriate measures, including recommending civic body action against water wastage.

In an advisory issued to residents on Saturday, DLF said water supply normalisation and “re-pressurisation” of the distribution network was under way. It said restoration could take additional time in downstream and tail-end areas and urged residents to avoid wastage.

“Given the continuing constraints, we request everyone to exercise utmost care in the use of water and avoid any wastage. Our Security and Estate teams have been instructed to remain vigilant and take appropriate action wherever water wastage is observed, including car washing, overflowing tanks, excessive use of booster pumps, or other avoidable use of potable water,” it added.

Construction sites found using potable water would also be identified for punitive action, the advisory further said.

While GMDA teams repaired the master supply pipeline on Thursday night to stabilise the network, fresh damage to another critical pipeline compounded the city’s water woes on Saturday.

GMDA spokesperson Neha Sharma told The Indian Express that a 1,000-mm/700-mm pipeline near Baani Square in Sector 50’s South City II was damaged by an unidentified party during excavation work.

“Water supply to sectors 46, 48, 49, 50, 52, 56, 57, and 58 to 76 will remain affected until the repair work is completed,” Sharma said, adding that dewatering operations and repairs were underway.