This gives a new meaning to high and dry. People who bought flats in the 32-storey Shapoorji Pallonji Parkwest housing society in central Bengaluru's Hosakere Road have held protests after the water supply to their homes was disrupted. And these flats came at a steep price of Rs 2 crore onwards each. Videos from the incident showed residents holding rallies while chanting, "We want water!"
Months ahead of peak summer, Bengaluru is already reeling from an unprecedented water crisis, with apartment owners scrambling for supply amidst dried-up bore wells and overburdened tanker services.
Much of the blame lies with the rampant construction across the city. Against the backdrop of steadily rising real estate prices, experts says the water situation has worsened due to the added burden of unplanned construction and infrastructure expansion.
According to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, almost half of the city's existing borewells have dried up. Piped water from the Kaveri is only available in some areas and homes in areas brought under city limits in 2007 continue to rely on borewells, which have been failing because of the falling water table levels due to overuse.
In fact, places where tenants used to receive regular piped water supply from the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) are also facing a shortage. Sayan Saha, who lives close to Begur Road, a primarily residential area, has been out of water for the last two days as the piped water suddenly stopped. "I had to take a bath at a friend's place until we managed to arrange tanker water to our apartment," he said.
Experts suggest a ban on water supply
Most construction sites, especially ones close to the eastern IT corridor of Whitefield, depend on groundwater through borewells to meet their needs.
BWSSB officials said construction sites constitute a significant proportion of water consumption, mostly met through borewells, contributing to the depletion of groundwater tables in parts of the city.
TV Ramachandra, a scientist at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), said they have already started suggesting that the government ban water supply to large construction sites.
During a similar water crisis in 2019, the Karnataka Groundwater Authority had passed a rule prohibiting the use of borewell water for construction. The state government had also mulled a five-year ban on new residential projects.
"They can penalise the developers for using groundwater for construction purposes or digging borewells. Instead, the state government can sell treated water from treatment plants to the developer," suggested Ramachandra.
Last week, BWSSB chairman Ram Prasath Manohar said the state body planned to tie up with the Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India (CREDAI) Bengaluru to supply treated water to construction sites and large housing societies starting April 2.
However, Ramachandra added, "We have aggravated the situation by over-concretising and expanding real estate without proper water management in the city. The state government needs to be more stringent in providing water supply to construction sites. Just ahead of summer are we seeing such a shortage, and this will worsen in peak-summer months ahead."
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