With parts of the Marathwada region facing water shortage due to inadequate rainfall, water supply to breweries in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district might be curtailed if necessary, an official said. The Jayakwadi dam's Nath Sagar reservoir supplies water to residential and industrial areas of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and the neighboring Jalna district.
Twelve companies are involved in making liquor and beer in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. In the 2023-24 financial year, these companies manufactured 761.53 lakh bulk litres of liquor and 3,778.28 bulk litres of beer, an excise official said. They generated revenue of ₹5,455.70 crore for the state government, which was ₹347.14 crore more than the previous year (2022-2023), the official informed.
Amid scarcity, 443 water tankers have been operating in the district as of April 4. As of now, 269 villages and 48 hamlets are dependent on tanker water supply, a revenue official said.
Asked about the water availability and its management, Collector Dilip Swami told reporters on Monday that making water available for drinking purposes was their priority. "But if the water requirement of breweries in the city is more, then we can take a decision to curtail their supply," he said. The collector was interacting with media as part of the 'Samvad Setu' programme organized for discussions over the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in the district.
