NGOs, citizens’ groups serve legal notice to PMC, PCMC, PMRDA over water crisis

During the hearing of the public interest litigation (PIL) 126/2023 regarding the water problem faced by the residents of the urban areas of Pune district on April 10, 2023

On Wednesday, November 22, 11 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and citizens’ groups served legal notice to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) over failure to resolve the persistent water crisis in their respective jurisdictions. In failing to constitute a committee to resolve the water crisis faced by the residents in their jurisdictions despite the Bombay High Court’s directions to do so, the local bodies have acted in contempt of the court, the NGOs said.

Currently, several housing societies in Pune district are facing severe water shortage and are spending huge amounts of money on purchasing water from private water tanker operators. (REPRESENTATIVE PIC)

During the hearing of the public interest litigation (PIL) 126/2023 regarding the water problem faced by the residents of the urban areas of Pune district on April 10, 2023, the Bombay High Court (HC) had directed that a special committee be constituted separately for the PMC and PCMC to attend to the residents’ complaints regarding water scarcity. The committee would comprise the municipal commissioner, divisional commissioner, chief-city engineer and member, secretary, and district legal services’ authority. The HC had also directed the PMRDA to address the water problem faced by the residents in its jurisdiction, the NGOs said.

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Advocate Satya Muley, the NGOs’ lawyer, informed that in June this year, notice had been served to the PMC, PCMC and PMRDA requesting them to provide information about the special committee. However, none of them had furnished any information about the formation of the committee.

Advocate Muley said, “It is apparent that the PMC, PCMC and PMRDA have not formed any such special committee and a fresh legal notice has been issued on Wednesday to all three authorities. If we do not receive information about the formation of the special committee, a contempt of court petition will be filed against all respective office-bearers who are supposed to be members of the proposed committee.”

Currently, several housing societies in Pune district are facing severe water shortage and are spending huge amounts of money on purchasing water from private water tanker operators. Each and every neighbourhood of the urban areas of Pune district coming under the PMC, PCMC and PMRDA is facing acute shortage of drinking- and domestic use- water. Areas such as Baner-Balewadi, Wagholi, Hinjewadi, Bavdhan, Pashan, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Wakad, Mundhwa and many other regions of Pune district are facing a severe water crunch, and these urban areas are now in the grip of the private water tanker mafia. The housing societies in Pune district are spending close to ₨300 to ₨400 crores per month to purchase the water needed daily from private water tanker operators.

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Tushar Sarode, a resident of Sukhwani Panorama, Sus, said, “We don’t get water supply from the corporation and we depend on private water tankers. We don’t understand how building permissions are given without making basic water supply available.”

Amrut Khodke, chairman of Green Olive Apartments, Hinjewadi, said that since 2013, their residential buildings have not got a single drop of water from the Gram Panchayat, Zilla Parishad or PMRDA. “We spend lakhs every month to buy private water tankers. Till date, Green Olive Apartments must have paid crores of rupees to local water tanker suppliers. What is shocking is that nobody is bothered in the entire government to solve our problems in spite of more than 10 follow-ups with each authority every year.”

The 11 NGOs and citizens’ groups that served legal notice to the local bodies on Wednesday and were the original petitioners in the PIL 126/2023 include: the Wagholi Housing Societies Association, Pune District Cooperative Housing Societies and Apartments Federation, Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat, Pimpri-Chinchwad Cooperative Housing Welfare Societies Federation Ltd., Baner-Pashan Link Road Welfare Trust, Balewadi Residency Cooperative Housing Welfare Federation Ltd., Dear Society Welfare Association, Bavdhan Citizens’ Forum, Hinjewadi Employees and Residents Trust, Aundh Vikas Mandal, and Association of Nagar Road Citizens’ Forum. These petitioners had filed the PIL in the Bombay HC through advocate Muley, advocate of the Supreme Court of India and Bombay HC.

Nandakishor Jagtap, head of the PMC water department, informed that following the Bombay HC’s directions, a letter reading the same has been sent to the divisional commissioner’s office. The committee will be headed by the divisional commissioner. The work to form the committee is under process. Shrikant Savane, joint city engineer of the PCMC, said that the committee will be headed by the divisional commissioner and that they have written to the divisional commissioner’s office and the latter’s response is awaited.