Good news for Mumbai: No water cuts this summer, stock to last till July 31, says BMC

Good news for Mumbaiites — there will be no water cuts this summer. The seven lakes that supply water to the city are 29.57% full. With more than 4.2 lakh million liters of water, this stock is expected to last the city till July 31, said officials. Additionally, the weather department has told us not to expect poor rainfall, said civic officials.

“We have developed the capacity to stock larger quantities of water. Its supply will vary depending on the monsoon. Currently, we have enough water to last the city till end of July. There will be no water cuts till then,” said Ashok Tawadia, chief engineer of hydraulic engineering department.

Read: No water cuts this summer, Maharashtra’s dams have enough water to last 6 months

Currently, the civic body supplies 3,750 million liters of water daily (mld), while the city needs as much as 4,200 mld. According to civic officials, the Brihanmumbai Municpal Corporation (BMC) has developed the capacity to store an additional 265 mld.

Plants set up to recycle backwash water — potable water which is wasted during the filtration process — at Bhandup and Panjrapur, with supply Mumbai with an additional 120 mld. The Gundavali-Kapurbawadi-Bhandup underground water tunnel has helped the civic body to source 105 mld more from Bhatsa lake. This was impossible earlier owing to restrictions in the conveyance system. Another 40 mld will be acquired from a tunnel commissioned to source water from Modak Sagar lake.

Last summer, the city had faced a serious water crisis, during which 20% water cuts were imposed on residents. As the arrival of the monsoon has been delayed over the past few years, the civic body prepares its water distribution strategy from October 1 to July 31 each year, as lakes fill during the rains.