Thane: Water scarcity continues to hound several households

THANE: Thousands of households in extended parts of Thane city and suburbs continue to suffer water scarcity as the municipal corporation here has been unable to provide them with the assured additional 50 million litres daily (mld) water supply from August 1, residents complained.
It may be recalled that a review meeting was held recently in the presence of chief minister Eknath Shinde where the irrigation department was directed to provide additional 50 mld water to Thane city starting August 1. However, officials claimed the network of pipelines was yet to be strengthened leaving the plan to remain on paper and forcing residents to continue enduring daily water scarcity and costly tanker services.
Kaptan Mali, a resident of Diva said their society of two highrises has been facing water scarcity for long and they have been spending nearly Rs 2 lakhs extra every month to get water tankers. “We have been paying our taxes on time but despite that we are forced to shell out extra every month for getting basic necessities like water. These extra charges are straining our budgets,” he said.
Meanwhile, a Ghodbunder society tired of shelling out a premium to tankers has decided to observe a dry Sunday as a mark of protest. “Our society of 2000 families requires over 10 private water tankers daily to ensure adequate water supply. We have now decided to stop calling tankers on Sundays as we don’t have the money to spend on it frequently,” said a resident Sagar Dani.
It may be noted that Thane city with a population of roughly 25 lakhs presently draws nearly 505 mld water from various sources including the MIDC, STEM, BMC and its own supply system. The CM had recently okayed 50 mld additional water to be lifted from the Bhatsa reservoir by the TMC while another 50 mld has been okayed from the Barvi reservoir for future use.
“The irrigation department had okayed additional water for Thane corporation limits but we are unable to lift the same due to our constraints. We are in the process of realigning the distribution network which may take a few days following which we will be able to provide additional water to residents from even far flung areas of the city limits like Diva, Ghodbunder road among others,” said the official.