Kala Nagar residents face water crisis; allege diversion of supply by BMC

Residents of Kala Nagar in Bandra East, Mumbai, are facing a water shortage, forcing them to rely on water tankers. Despite complaints to the BMC, the crisis continues. The residents suspect that water is being diverted to other areas. The issue has been exacerbated by the redevelopment of buildings in Kala Nagar, which has caused a decrease in water pressure. The BMC has acknowledged the issue and said it will be resolved in the next few days.

Mumbai: The residents of Kala Nagar area in Bandra East have spent lakhs of rupees in getting water tankers in the past few months due to water shortage in their area.

Mumbai, India - Sep 01, 2023 : Water Issue in Sahitya Sahanivas Building, Kala Nagar at Bandra East, in Mumbai, India, Thursday, Sep 01, 2023. (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo)

More than 50-odd old buildings in Kala Nagar have been affected and despite making several complaints to the BMC’s ward office and water department, the crisis continues. The residents, part of old buildings, have alleged that the civic body is diverting water to other areas leading to a water crisis in their building.

Swati Kulkarni, managing committee member of the Artek Apartments and also a member of Advanced Locality Management (ALM) Bandra East, said, “For the last two days there has been no water supply and we are forced to rely on tankers. The issue has been there for many months. The water supply is good on some days and some days it’s bad. We do not understand why it is happening only in our area. Is the water being diverted elsewhere?”

Frustrated with BMC’s inefficiency in supplying water, Kulkarni added, “The members have raised it to the highest levels of BMC officials and yet the issue remains. We pay our taxes on time but we have to suffer when it comes to receiving water. Water is everything.”

Arvind Bhanage, a resident of Sahitya Sahawas Housing Society in Bandra East said, “The society has 50 – 55 years old buildings. Our building was getting a regular supply of water but in the last two to three years we have had a very erratic supply of water. This issue has been raised due to the redevelopment of buildings in Kala Nagar colony. This is causing less water pressure leading to only two hours of supply in the older buildings.”

He further added, “We used to have a consistent and reliable supply of water every day, but now the water crisis problem is at its worst because the redevelopment process is poorly planned. BMC officials said they would lower the water pressure. As a result of this, nearby redevelopment buildings are getting water by diverting it from here.”

Bhanage said that at times they have to spend ₹1 lakh per month for water tankers in the housing society which has around 80 flats.

Swapnaja Kshirsagar, assistant commissioner H East ward said, “The Hydraulic Engineer department has changed timings for charging the water pipeline before water is released. They are exercising the change of timings to ensure everyone gets water. This has led to water issues and we have been informed that the issue will get resolved in two or three days.”

Dr Ajit Desai, president of Bandra East ALM said, “For the last two days, water supply has been very critical. We were told it is due to change in timings and diversion of water supply. The issue has existed on and off for many months. We wrote to the additional municipal commissioner (western suburbs) recently and he asked the ward officer to resolve it. We hope that’s done soon.”