Reuse and retreat water before asking for additional quota: Vikhe Patil
After the meeting, Vikhe Patil interacted with the media, wherein he criticised the PMC for approving mega housing projects without evaluating available water resources
Stressing the need for sustainable water management practices, State Water Resources Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil on Saturday urged the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to justify their demand for additional water. The minister on Saturday held a meeting with irrigation department officials at YASHADA in the city and discussed various issues pertaining to the water supply in the city.

After the meeting, Vikhe Patil interacted with the media, wherein he criticised the PMC for approving mega housing projects without evaluating available water resources.
According to Vikhe Patil, Pune and all other municipal corporations would not receive additional water quotas unless they treat sewage water before releasing it into rivers.
Vikhe Patil remarked, “It is the responsibility of municipal corporations to utilise sewage water. The municipal corporations are using an easy method to request additional water from the irrigation department and claim agricultural water. However, from now on, municipal corporations must purify sewage water before releasing it for reuse.”
Vikhe Patil added, “Many housing societies and mega projects coming up in urban areas ask for additional water, which is meant for agriculture. While issuing the permissions for new buildings, local bodies must think of reusing and retreating the water.”
While commenting on the PMC’s demand for additional water for Pune, he said, “No decision has been made on this proposal yet, but PMC is taking additional water from dams and the irrigation department has raised this issue many times. Our stand is to follow the norms, reuse and retreat the water then ask for additional water.”
During the meeting, the irrigation department officers discussed the proposed river-connecting projects in Maharashtra.
Moreover, the issue had been raised in the meeting about encroachments around dams. Vikhe Patil instructed the officers to take strict action against such encroachments and stop their sewage which flows into dams.