After struggling for a year to secure bidders for a desalination plant, the BMC scrapped its previous tender in September last year. However, with Mumbai's water demand steadily rising and the Gargai Dam project still years away from completion, the authorities have decided to reinitiate the project. A fresh tender will be issued this month for a plant on a 12-hectare plot in Manori village, along the sea in the western suburbs.
Despite multiple extensions to the bidding deadline since December 2023, the project failed to attract bidders. The latest extension ended on August 29, 2024, with only one bid received. As a result, the civic body decided to scrap the tendering process and shift focus to the Gargai Dam project. Since the construction of the Middle Vaitarna Dam in 2012, the Municipal Corporation has not built any new dams in over a decade.
The Gargai Dam, located 110 km from Mumbai in Palghar district, could supply 440 million litres (ML) of water daily to the city. To compensate for acquiring 659 hectares of forest land, the BMC has finalised 488 hectares in Chandrapur and secured 400 hectares near Wada in Palghar from the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra. The Rs. 5,000 crore project is currently awaiting environmental approvals.
"The Gargai Dam will take several years to complete, while Mumbai’s population is projected to reach nearly two crore by 2041, pushing the city’s daily water demand to 6,426 ML. To address this urgent need, we will revise our terms and conditions to attract more bidders, after which a fresh bid will be invited," said a senior civic official. The proposed desalination plant, initially designed with a capacity of 200 ML per day, has the potential for future expansion to 400 ML per day. The plant is expected to be operational within four years, with an estimated cost of Rs. 3,520 crore.
Previously, the Congress party had raised concerns over potential cartelisation in the tender process, alleging that the terms were manipulated to favor a particular bidder. They demanded clarification from the BMC and called for the cancellation of the tender if these allegations were proven true.
