To counter the looming water crisis, the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) has chalked out a contingency plan which envisages a series of measures including- ban on issuance on new water lines till the quantum of supply reaches sufficient levels, special squads to weed out illegal lines and a third party water audit to detect imbalances in the distribution system.
“Yes, issuance of new water lines have been clamped. However, emergency applications will be processed only after gauging the need of the applicant, physical on-site verification and minute scrutiny of pre-2011 documents. The move is to maintain balance of existing water supply infrastructure which is already under huge pressure due to limited resources which are unable to meet the demand. Other measures are also being taken to save water and weed out anomalies in the internal distribution system.” said civic chief-Dilip Dhole.
“Ten dedicated squads each comprising engineers, meter readers and clerks have been deputed to detect illegal connections in their respective areas and also survey the number of connections and nature of usage. This is a user-friendly redressal system where citizens can send an SMS or upload photos and complaints on WhatsApp to report illegal water connections and leakages.” said Executive Engineer- Suresh Vakode.
As against the requirement of over 225 MLD, the twin-city has an allotted supply of 211 MLD provided jointly by the MIDC (125 MLD) and STEM (86 MLD) water supply authority.
However, the actual supply hovers below 190 MLD. The total number of water lines issued by the MBMC was pegged at 43,617 till 20, October- 2021.
The civic administration was at the receiving end of political parties owing to the acute water shortage following back-to-back technical snags and shut downs by the providers, last month. With no self-sustained resources of water supply like other civic bodies, the twin-city also faces a demographic dilemma as it falls in the tail-end of the district.
