Kolkata: Several parts of Kolkata, particularly in the south, are now heavily dependent on tankers and packaged water to tide over the crisis triggered by the prolonged heat spell. In areas like Tollygunge, Jadavpur, Baghajatin and pockets of Prince Anwar Shah Connector, KMC is sending over 200 tankers, each of 450 litre capacity, daily to meet the shortfall.
The demand for water is escalating in the Tollygunge-Jadavpur belt and EM Bypass neighbourhoods that depend on groundwater.Residents in some pockets of Behala have also started complaining about water shortage. According to a KMC water supply department official, around 60 tankers are being sent to the dry pockets of Behala.
“Considering the heatwave that has led to depletion in groundwater, we are keeping a fleet of tankers ready for stretches of the Tollygunge -Jadavpur belt that are known as tubewell zones. If need be, we will augment our daily water supply to meet the growing demand,” he said.
Residents in these areas are cutting down on water use so that it can be used for essential household works. “At present, the priority is to save water for drinking, washing and watering the plants. We are using less water to wash utensils and postponing deep cleaning of the house,” said Sayani Bhattacharjee, a resident of Baghajatin.
Demand for packaged water, too, is surging by the day. Several markets in the city, too, are facing a water crisis and have been forced to procure water. Even in the central business district, market committees, retailers and even various offices are relying on jars of water delivered by distributors every day.
“Demand for water has gone up due to the weather. We are ordering a water tanker every alternate day to make up for the shortfall,” said Amir Khan, a committee member of the Madan Street Dealers’ and Sellers’ Association.
The suppliers of packaged water in central Kolkata said the demand had increased four-fold and they were struggling to meet the demand.
“Not only shops and markets, we are receiving calls even from households as the supply is not enough to keep up with the demand. Earlier, we would receive daily orders for 150 to 175 pet jars of 20 litre each but for the past two weeks or so, we have been delivering more than 700 jars a day,” said Vinod Singh, a distributor of packaged drinking in Chandni Chowk.