BMC halves Pali Hill’s water supply
The Pali Hill Residents’ Association (PHRA) has accused the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) of foul play, alleging that the civic body has cut water supply to the area by almost by 50 per cent since.
The PHRA claims that the move was taken by the BMC after they stalled a
pilot project from taking off in Pali Hill three years ago, and again, a few
weeks back. As per the project, water would be supplied to the locality by
using the force of gravity rather than pumps run on electricity.
Says Madhu Poplai, secretary of PHRA, “The project, even if successful,
would have reduced our water supply to 450 liters per family as against the
900 liters we are getting now. But our water supply has still been cut down
by half as our area has been linked with another area. Concerned officials
are neither increasing the force nor the duration of water supply, leading
to acute water shortage.”
The PHRA also says that two years ago, the BMC had “dug up” Pali Hill to
replace old pipes with new, wider pipes, all the way till Mount Mary Church
via Hill Road. Members argue that the money spent for that project will be
wasted if the pipes are replaced all over again. Instead, the project should
be implemented in areas with old pipelines.
Local residents add that it will be difficult for certain buildings to
procure water through the gravity system. “If the project is not successful,
the BMC plans to use the old pipeline system again, wasting Rs 18-20 crore
of the taxpayer’s money,” said a resident of the area.
When queried about the matter, H (west) ward officer Govind Rathode passed
the buck on to the Hydraulics Department, which in turn refused to comment
on it.
URL : http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=231381