Cascade Of Power Failures Disrupts Pune Water Supply For Three Days In Key Parts Of City

Pune: A series of electrical faults at key water pumping stations and treatment plants disrupted water supply across Pune for three consecutive days, leaving residents in several localities struggling with delayed supply and low pressure just ahead of Diwali. Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) restored normal power supply and pumping operations at the Khadakwasla pumping station at 8 am on Sunday after installing one of the two replacement transformers, while the second was scheduled to be commissioned later in the day.

The disruptions began with the scheduled weekly water supply shutdown on Thursday, Oct 29, followed by an electrical cable fault at the Parvati water treatment plant on Friday and multiple power supply failures at the Khadakwasla pumping station on Saturday. The successive incidents affected water distribution across central, eastern and western parts of the city.

On Oct 30, an electrical cable fault at the Parvati water treatment plant forced the shutdown of its old 350-million-litres-per-day (MLD) treatment facility for nearly four hours. Operations resumed after the fault was repaired. The following day, the express feeder of the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), supplying electricity from Nanded City to the Khadakwasla pumping station, was damaged during construction work.

Although MSEDCL arranged an alternative power supply through the Urban Gram express feeder, the supply was interrupted again after a monkey came into contact with an overhead power line, triggering a short circuit. Subsequent inspections revealed damage to two transformers at the pumping station.

As an emergency arrangement, PMC deployed diesel generator (DG) sets to maintain pumping operations. Four of the five pumps supplying raw water to the Warje water treatment plant remained operational, maintaining approximately 80% of the pumping capacity.

With immediate repairs to the damaged transformers not possible, Vishvaraj Environment Limited, the agency responsible for operating and maintaining the pumping station, arranged two replacement transformers, each with a capacity of 1,200 kVA, on a rental basis from a private supplier on Oct 31. One transformer was installed and commissioned, enabling normal power supply and pumping operations to resume on Sunday morning. The second transformer was scheduled for installation, with DG sets being used as backup until its commissioning.

Nandkishor Jagtap, Head of PMC's Water Supply Department, said, “In Khadakwasla, a replacement 1,200 kVA transformer was successfully installed, allowing normal mains power and pumping operations to resume around 8 am on Sunday. To clear the accumulated deficit, PMC has initiated extended pumping hours, targeting low-pressure pockets in affected areas.”

Water supply complaints were received from several localities, including all Peth areas, the Pune railway station vicinity, Kharadi, Wadgaon Sheri, Bhandarkar Road, parts of Kothrud, Karvenagar, Shivajinagar and Aundh, among others. PMC has directed engineers to monitor the distribution network and prioritise complaints from affected areas. Additional pumping hours will be provided to compensate for the accumulated shortfall, subject to technical and operational constraints.

However, the disruption drew sharp criticism from residents, who questioned the civic body's preparedness ahead of the festival. Dhananjay Kumar, a resident of Kothrud, said, “Citizens are already suffering due to the heavy water cuts every Thursday. If the situation does not improve over the next two days, it represents a major failure on the part of PMC.”

Tejasvi Yadav, another resident, said the civic body must take responsibility for the inconvenience caused. She also alleged that although civic officials had assured residents that they would not face water shortages during the festive period, the situation on the ground was worsening.

Vivek Velankar of Sajag Nagrik Manch also questioned PMC's water management planning, particularly in view of the city's allocated water stock. “What management plan was approved last week on 24 TMC of water available in the Khadakwasla dam circle?” he asked. He also sought clarity on whether the 13 TMC water reservation for Pune was intended for the period from Nov 1, 2026, to Aug 31, 2027, or from July 1, 2026, to Aug 31, 2027.