Consider desalination plant as an additional source of water for Mumbai: Lokayukta

The Lokayukta has asked the Principal Secretary of the Urban Development Department to file a report and ‘point out whether any research or study has been done by the Government of Maharashtra in this regard.’

Earlier this month, The Indian Express had reported that amid the civic body’s tender for its ambitious desalination plant drawing feeble response from bidders, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) scrapped the tender for the Rs 3,520 crore-project. Despite multiple deadline extensions, only one company–Israel based IDE Technologies–had applied for the tender. With only one bidder responding, the BMC commenced the process to cancel the tender on August 29.

Based on complaints filed in 2021 regarding the water theft issue in Mumbai, the Lokayukta in July 2022 had formed a Special investigation Team (SIT) comprising officers from the state government’s Urban Development Department, police and BMC.

The SIT suggestions asked the BMC to set up the infrastructure like fire department to attend water leakages within minimum possible period. The suggestions included forming ward-wise special squads to inspect sites of illegal connections on water mains and to direct concerned section of water department to initiate action including police FIR; GPS / VTS system shall be made compulsory for all water tankers in the city; the system of CCTV camera
surveillance at all water filling points, legal bore/open wells sites /locations shall be connected with the server of BMC; the civic body shall inspect the offices of owners of water tankers and it shall lodge complaint against tanker owners who have defaulted the rules/norms of carrying water through tanker and for this purpose separate vigilance squad be created among others.

The Lokayukta has sought government response on the suggestions given by the SIT.