A pipeline burst & an unending leak in thirsty city

Officials from the hydraulic engineering department blame the MMRDA for the burst at Santacruz but are not certain about the cause in Matunga. “There is waterlogging at the site. We have not been able to locate the exact spot of leakage,” said hydraulic engineer Vinay Deshpande,while blaming the Santacruz burst on the negligence of the MMRDA’s skywalk contractor.

“They started excavating deep on Saturday night and damaged the pipleline. We discovered it on Sunday morning during supply period at 8:30 am when water started gushing out,” said Deshpande. Supply to major parts of Santacruz West was affected on Sunday.

MMRDA spokesperson Dilip Kawathkar confirmed that the skywalk construction had caused the damage at Santacruz but denied that the flyover at Matunga was the cause for the spillage there.

BMC officials said it would take another day or two to locate the rupture at Matunga though they hoped to plug the Santacruz leakage by Sunday night.

For over three days now,the BMC has been pumping out water accumulating on the stretch at Matunga. “Three major 32-inch water mains run parallel under the stretch. There are chances of damage to more than one,” said an official requesting anonymity. Following the Grant Road pipeline burst on January 4,the BMC had written to the MMRDA asking its staff and contractors to be careful while digging roads.

In May last year,the MMRDA had damaged pipelines twice during construction of the Lalbaug flyover. Bills for the repairs,amounting to Rs 13 lakh,had been sent but are yet to be paid,BMC officials said.