22 families in Bengaluru fined Rs 1.1 lakh for 'misuse' of water: Report

The authorities in the city have been appealing for judicious use of water.

Twenty-two families in water-starved Bengaluru have been fined around Rs 1.1 lakh for the alleged ‘misuse’ of drinking water, a report by India Today said on March 26.

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewarage Board (BWSSB), which collected the penalty, said the families used water for non-essential activities such as cleaning of cars amid the city's worst water crisis in decades.

The authorities in the city have been appealing for judicious use of water. "Most of the complaints are being registered from the south-east of the city, and along with complaints, warnings and appeals are being issued to the people asking them to use water sparingly," BWSSB chairperson Ram Prashant Manohar said.

According to the report, the south-west area alone has accounted for penalties worth Rs 65,000 out of the total.

Last week, Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah said Bengaluru is facing a shortage of about 500 million litres of water per day (MLD). There are 14,000 borewells in Bengaluru, of which 6,900 have dried, the chief minister had told reporters.

The city had banned usage of water for various activities such as cleaning of cars, gardening, construction activities and running of fountains, among others.

Earlies, BWSSB decided to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies for efficient borewell management. On March 25, it demonstrated the implementation of AI and IoT in a borewell located at Benson Town in Central Bengaluru. Of the around 14,000 public borewells in Bengaluru, nearly 6,900 have already dried up this summer.