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Journalism of Courage
MUMBAI, OCT 21: With water levels at Tansa and Upper Vaitarna, the two major lakes supplying water to the city registering a low this year and plans to take up works of installing connecting valves’ between four major water supply lines underway, 10-12 per cent water cuts are going to be a daily affair for the entire city till the next monsoon.
Though the civic officials had decided to impose the water cuts after Diwali, the low frequency of power supplied recently to Pise and Panjrapur pumping stations have compelled them to begin the cuts straightaway.
From Friday, the main pumping stations at Pise Panjrapur and Bhandup has been receiving electricity at a lower frequency and so a ten per cent cut in water supply has been imposed from today, which will continue till the end of Diwali, officials from the civic hydraulic engineering department said.
The situation is expected to remain the same till the next monsoon, with a 10-12 percent cut from November onwards. From November to February, the cut will be brought about to carry out work on Mumbai I, II, III and IV water supply projects. In the first week of November, work at Mumbai Water Supply III (A) project will be underway to lay a nine-km long supply connection between Pise and Panjrapur pumping stations. The city will receive 455 mld less, which amounts to a 10-12 percent cut in water supply.
After that work of installing 4 valves to connect the supply lines laid in the Mumbai I, II, III and IV water supply projects will be undertaken which is expected to complete by February. In this period, the water cut will be about 12 percent as the supply main where the work will be carried out will need an isolation for 8-10 days, said Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Special Engineering ) S N Phatnani.
After February, the BMC will be imposing water cut as a precautionary measure as the lakes of Tansa and Upper Vaitarna, have not overflowed this monsoon. “The level at Tansa is 3 feet less as compared to last year and that at Upper Vaitarna is 2 feet less,” Phatnani added.
