Nagpur Water Supply Maintained Amid Leak Repairs
Nagpur Municipal Corporation avoids a 10% water cut by focusing on repairing leaks and addressing illegal connections.
NMC will maintain current water supply levels despite state directive.
Approximately 35% of water is lost due to leaks and illegal connections.
Mayor Neeta Thakre emphasizes ongoing assessment of reservoir levels.
The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has decided not to implement a 10% reduction in the city's water supply, despite directives from the state government. Instead, the NMC will focus on repairing leakages and addressing illegal connections to recover lost water. Currently, the city continues to draw 740 million litres per day from the Totladoh reservoir and the Kanhan river.
This decision was made ahead of the state's deadline for supply reduction. Mayor Neeta Thakre confirmed to the Times of India that there will be no immediate cuts, although she indicated that future reductions may be considered based on the status of the reservoirs. "We will analyze the status of the reservoirs in the coming days and take a decision on whether to reduce supply or continue with the current arrangement," Thakre stated.
NMC's strategy is primarily aimed at addressing non-revenue water, which refers to treated water that is supplied but does not generate income. The civic body estimates that around 259 million litres per day, or nearly 35% of Nagpur's total supply, is lost due to leakages and unauthorized connections. A 10% cut would equate to a loss of approximately 74 million litres daily, prompting NMC to seek solutions through improved distribution management rather than outright supply cuts.
Superintending engineer Shweta Banerjee reported that the NMC has managed to save 300 million litres over the past six days by plugging leaks and converting illegal connections to legal ones. This translates to an average saving of 50 million litres per day, although it remains unclear how sustainable these savings will be. Banerjee assured that efforts to repair leaks and tackle illegal connections will persist, and residents have been urged to conserve treated drinking water.
For residents, the immediate outcome is that their water supply will remain unchanged without the anticipated 10% cut. However, the NMC now bears the responsibility for demonstrating that effective management of leak repairs and connections can yield significant savings. The issue of non-revenue water highlights a broader concern, as it indicates that a considerable amount of water is not reaching paying consumers. The NMC's future actions will depend on the continuation of reported savings and the evolving levels of the reservoirs, with a review of the supply situation expected in the coming days.
