The state government is believed to have initiated a study on how to draw water for Pune from Mulshi dam. (File) After the merger of 23 new villages under its jurisdiction, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) revised its annual water demand to 20.07 thousand million cubic feet (TMC), five TMC higher than the present 14.48 TMC granted by the state government. The additional demand, it proposed, should be met from Mulshi dam.
PMC also estimated that with a growth in the population, the annual water demand will increase to 23.34 TMC by 2031-32.
As per the 2011 census, the population of the city is around 35 lakh but considering its growth in the last 10 years, the civic body estimated that the current figure stands around 45 lakh.
On June 30, the state government had officially merged 23 villages under PMC, making the civic body the biggest municipal corporation in the state with an area of 516 sq km. Earlier in 2017, the state government had merged 11 villages under PMC.
Pune Mayor Murlidhar Mohol said, “The state government’s decision to merge 23 villages in the city is a welcome step but it should provide Rs 10,000 crore for undertaking development of civic facilities in the newly-merged areas. Also, the city needs additional water supply to meet the demands of the increased population.”
Before the merger, PMC had been demanding 18.58 TMC water considering the increasing population but the state government had approved only 14.48 TMC. Now, the merger of villages has led to a further increase in demand and the civic administration has tabled a proposal with the City Improvement Committee of PMC to seek additional water from Mulshi dam.
The city has been getting 11.5 TMC water from four dams – Khadakwasla, Panshet, Varasgaon and Temghar. It recently started receiving 2.64 TMC water from Bhama Askhed and 0.34 TMC from Pavana. The state government is believed to have initiated a study on how to draw water for Pune from Mulshi dam with deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar directing the state irrigation department to study the plan to draw water from the dam, situated 40km away from the city. Presently, water from Mulshi dam is used by hydroelectric power plants owned by a private company.
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