Pune Municipal Corporation To Continue Regular Water Supply; No Immediate Water Cuts, Says Mayor Manjusha Nagpure

Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to continue regular water supply across the city, with no immediate plan to reintroduce water cuts. The decision comes after heavy rainfall over the past few days significantly increased water storage in the Khadakwasla dam chain.

The civic body had earlier suspended the water cuts from July 7 to July 12 to ensure an uninterrupted water supply during the annual Palkhi procession of Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj and Sant Tukaram Maharaj. As the relaxation period ends on Sunday, there were concerns that alternate-day water supply would resume from Monday. However, PMC officials have clarified that regular water supply will continue until further notice.

According to the Water Supply Department, the water stock in the Khadakwasla dam chain has increased to 16.64 TMC following continuous rainfall. Just a few weeks ago, the storage had dropped to 3.81 TMC, prompting the civic body to introduce alternate-day water supply from June 15 to conserve water.

Mayor Manjusha Nagpure said a final decision on whether water cuts will be required in the coming weeks will be taken after a meeting of all party leaders, which is scheduled for next week. Until then, the administration has been instructed to maintain regular water supply across Pune.

Earlier this year, the India Meteorological Department had forecast below-normal rainfall, while the expected impact of El Niño also raised concerns about water availability. These factors had led the PMC to implement a 25 per cent reduction in water use through scheduled supply cuts.

Chief Engineer of the Water Supply Department, Nandkishore Jagtap, said there is sufficient water available in the dam system at present. He said the decision to restart water cuts has been postponed because of the improved water levels.