Mumbai needs to be water-wise

Rainwater harvesting is important, simple and economical. The writer wonders why Mumbaikars are not waking up to its urgency.

According to indications, Mumbai is in a state of crisis with regard to water-supply.

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But Suprabha Marathe, assistant engineer (Rainwater Harvesting cell) at Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) does not believe it. "What water crisis?" she asked while speaking at a rainwater-harvesting seminar organised for the city's co-operative housing societies by the Eureka Forbes Institute of Environment on March 22, 2004.

According to Marathe, "Just divide BMC's water supply of 2,950 million litres per day (mld) with the city's population of 12 million and see for yourself." Well, the result of the division works out to 245 litres per person per day, which is a good figure to tout. But this figure is a simple average. Half the population of Mumbai, which probably resides in slums, does not consume more than 50 litres per person per day. Of the remaining half, only a few have access to 250 litres and more per person per day.

The costs of catching rainwater in abundant quantities in far-away village-areas, transporting it to BMC's Bhandup water treatment plant via pipes, treating it extensively and then supplying it through pipes to the entire city are high indeed. The frightening part is that the BMC is mum about the lake levels.