Security guards keep watch on water use in apartmets, hotels too facing shortage

BENGALURU: It’s not just the lower income groups in the city who are facing hardship due to water scarcity in the city. Upscale apartment complexes and even commercial establishments like hotels are faced with a huge shortage.

At some of the residential complexes in the city, security guards have been hired to keep a check on villas using excessive water while several associations have also issued instructions to residents on judicious use of water. The water shortage is more acute in the IT corridor including Whitefield, KR Pura, Mahadevapura apart from JP Nagar, Jayanagar and Kanakapura Road.

Villas have been allocated 22 kilolitres of water, while washing of cars using drinking water has been prohibited. Any violation will attract a Rs 5,000 penalty. Bangalore Apartment Federation general secretary Vishnu Gattupalli said, “The water situation in the city is very serious. Water tankers are not available, and even if they are, there is no saying when they will come. Also, the rates have been jacked up. If the government and politicians are serious about the issue, it won’t take long to restore normalcy.

“We conducted a survey of water tankers and rates have been hiked everywhere while there is no proper supply. We have also requested our members to use water judiciously and shared posters and videos with all the residents. We have requested members to use less than 100 litres per day per person. Security guards have also been hired to monitor water usage. We have also heard that penalty of Rs 5,000 is being imposed where there is excessive usage of water. To tide over this situation, political leaders should step in and ensure availability of water. Citizens should also regulate their water use in summer”, he added.

With borewells drying up and no supply of Cauvery water, people are lining up at reverse osmosis (RO) plants across the city. To ensure that water is made available to everyone, only one can of water is being given to every individual. At one of the plants in Rajarajeshwari Nagar, a notice to this effect has also been pasted outside the unit.

A resident said, “The timings has been restricted and we have to wait for at least an hour to get water. Instead of giving the freebies, the money could have been used by the government to desilt dams and increase storage. Politicians are more bothered about slogans being raised in Vidhana Soudha”.

Another resident said they have been facing water problems for at least one month. “Of the four or five RO plants in RR Nagar, only one is functional now. It takes us almost an hour to get a can of water. Political leaders should set aside their politics and ensure basic needs for people”.

Yet another resident pointed out, “This is an indication of what is in store in the coming months. Since only one can is given to an individual, we have to come to the RO plant almost every day”.

Not only common people, even government run institutions, industries and commercial establishments are facing a huge water scarcity with the summer setting in. Hotels have to wait for a day to get a tanker of water and even those that have their own borewells are witnessing a drop in the water table.

Many hotels in the city, which were paying Rs 400-500 per tanker load of 4,000 litres are now forced to shell out anywhere between Rs 800-1,000. Given the situation, the hoteliers’ associations have also advised their members to regulate water use.

On the other hand, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, which is taking up construction activities in different parts of the city, is also looking at ways to tackle the situation. The BMRCL MD also held a meeting with the civil division officials and discussed steps like storing of water, hiring tankers among others to deal with the current situation.

The BMRCL authorities have also decided to store water if they come across sources during tunnelling and underground works, storing rainwater, and preventing wastage of water at work sites.