Residents concerned about water pollution in Pavana river; officials promise action

Concerns about massive water pollution in the Pavana river has come to the fore after citizens noticed huge amount of foam in the water which comes from the Pavana river at the Keju Devi Temple boat club in Chinchwad.

A few days ago, a large amount of fish were also found dead in the same area. The nearby residents said that the water pollution issue keeps cropping up every few months.

Sanjay Kulkarni, executive engineer, environment from Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), said, “We were not aware about the current problem till now and I will send officials to check the status after you have provided us information.”

“There are a few commercial laundries in that area who have in the past also been served notices by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB). These laundries tend to discharge waste water in the river due to which various issues of water pollution keep on occurring at this place,” added Kulkarni.

The Pavana river water after passing from Keju Devi temple goes to Chinchwad at Morya Gosavi temple, Chinchwad Phata, Dapodi and then meets Mula river at Sangvi. The river covers a distance of 60km.

Along with water use for drinking purposes, the water has been also used by citizens for bathing or washing clothes who stay near the river banks.

“So far we have not heard any cases where human beings suffered health issues after drinking the water, but PCMC cannot ignore marine biodiversity which is getting damaged. Also, animals who drink water directly from the water are harmed,” said Piyush Patil, a resident of the area near Keju Devi Temple.

Social activist Madhav Patil of the organisation Angolichi Goli, said, “The water pollution issues have been raised in front of PCMC commissioner Shravan Hardikar and mayor Usha Dhore, but problems of water pollution go unheard every time. No concrete steps are being taken by the PCMC to stop water pollution.”

In 2018, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) listed it among the five most heavily polluted rivers of Maharashtra.

Untreated sewage, garbage, accumulation of silt and discharge of untreated waste were listed as the major causes of pollution.