The water situation is turning grimmer, but there is no talk of additional cuts to de al with a crisis if the monsoon is delayed yet again, this year.
Water stocks in the dams reservoirs will suffice till July 15, but another bad monsoon year will mean serious trouble for the city . Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) will have to increase cuts and save water in the dams for any contingen cy, but fearing a backlash, elec ted representatives are not in favour of additional cuts.
District collector Saurabh Rao last week categorically sa id four dams providing water to the city have a storage of 7.5 TMC and even if the city conti nues with the current alterna te day water supply , the quota will suffice till July 15. But neither the collector nor the municipal corporation can answer what will happen if the monsoon is delayed and if Pune city has to share its water with rural areas already ree ling under water scarcity .
Mayor Prashant Jagtap has stuck to his statement that the city’s water quota will take care of drinking needs till Au gust 15. “The collector must ha ve some other assumptions and calculations. The PMC is in regular touch with the irri gation department,“ he said.
When asked if the civic bo dy will impose more water cuts anticipating that the city’s wa ter quota will have to be shared with other parts, Jagtap said “We are not adamant that we will not share our water. Deci sions will be taken when the si tuation arises. But as of now we don’t plan any additional water cuts.“ He appeared con fident that the monsoon will arrive on time and make up for the lost years.
Experts have picked flaws in the PMC’s stand. Parineeta Dandekar of South Asia Net work on Dams, River and Peo ple said the city was taking the water crisis casually . “We can’t depend on a good monsoon to solve it -it is bad planning There will be a situation where the city will have to release wa ter for towns and villages downstream. The city is bound to share its water with them because all these years they ha ve received sewage released untreated into the river.“
Dandekar added that no po licy has evolved and water dis course continues to revolve around dam and water supply “Despite three droughts in the last four years, nobody is tal king about efficiency and plug ging of leakages. Why not launch a pilot project to reuse treated water for some purpo se?“ Col S G Dalvi (retd.), dis trict manager of Climate Rea lity Project, said, “This water crisis is alarming. Compared to the levels in February 2015, the reservoirs holding is down to just 30%. We have four months till the monsoon arrives. With a temperature increase, the evaporation rate too will rise. This situation is not sudden but is due to a deficit monsoon for the last four years.“ Dalvi insisted on early planning and decisions about water.
A senior irrigation official said, “The civic body must take a call on imposing additional water cuts. Afterwards, it will be too late as dams will have no water and all plans will go for a toss. The decision has to be made by the civic body and politicians.“
No political party in Pune is speaking of a water crisis or additional cuts. “Parties are gauging each other’s stand because it is an election year where water will play a major role. No party wants to be at the receiving end and they will all oppose any additional water cut,“ a senior party leader in the PMC said.
Citizens like Rahul Jugale are aware of the gravity of situation. “Pune is privileged when it comes to water and unlike Latur and other parts of Marathwada. We must be sensitive about the use of water.No harm if Puneites get water every 2-3 days for some months. We have to learn to manage with less water. People in Marathwada manage with water that they get once in a month,“ he said.
Source : TOI
