Homes worth crores, worms in water: Noida’s Supernova residents battle crisis

A daily struggle

Residents said they have been forced to buy packaged water for drinking.

Naresh Nandwani, Advisor, Super Nova Apartment Owners’ Association (SNAOA), said, “We get 40 litres of water that lasts for five days and it costs Rs 240. I have to prioritise my family’s health.”

But for the professor, who has bought a 20-litre can, this solves only one part of the problem. “How can we bathe with packaged water?” she asked.

As a temporary fix, the family bought a filter costing Rs 1 lakh two years ago but it needs to be replaced every two to two-and-a-half months. “When we take out the filter to replace it, we see how it’s turned red-black. And it’s expensive to keep doing so,” said Geeta.

She added that her 10-year-old son, who already has sensitive skin, has developed drier skin on his hands and legs. “I can even see pimples on his face… My sister-in-law is a dermatologist and when I took my son to her, the first thing she asked me was about the water we’re consuming,” she said.

Geeta and her partner, both in their early 40s, are also experiencing hair loss. “We get throat infections very often…,” she claimed.

The condition of the water has also made her reluctant to have guests over. “As a health freak, it is so embarrassing that I cannot keep my washroom clean. The water is so bad that once you flush, you have to clean the commode seat again. If you don’t, it gets damaged easily,” she said.

Behind the issue

Nandwani said residents used to receive Ganga water, but claimed the supply stopped more than two years ago.

“The builder of the project, which is currently undergoing insolvency, did not clear water dues of around Rs 42 lakh — it is now over Rs 72 lakh, including penalties,” he alleged.

“We are now dependent on borewell water, but the processing plant in the society has a limited capacity to filter it, which is why we are not getting clean water,” he claimed.

Mudit Kapur, General Secretary of the Apartment Owners’ Association, said his WhatsApp chats are filled with videos shared by families in the residents’ group, showing worms in the water and buckets filled with black water.

“It is a health hazard for young children and senior citizens, or for anyone, since water is a basic necessity,” said Kapur. “We get a lot of complaints, but resolution will take time.”

Recently, the association said it raised its concerns before the three-member committee appointed by the Supreme Court to oversee the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) of M/s Supertech Realtors Pvt Ltd, which had been caught in a series of litigations by homebuyers and others over its ambitious mixed-use project.

Nandwani said, “The SNAOA is working closely with the committee to sort out the problems, including restoring Ganga water supply.”

Geeta, however, said she wished she had known about the water problem earlier. “I would have thought multiple times before buying the house,” she said.