Nagpur faces water crisis

Nagpur faces severe water crisis

Nagpur: As the mercury crosses 40 degree Celsius mark, Nagpur and its adjoining districts have started facing severe water crisis due to lowering ground water level. The water level has dropped drastically in this region since March. And, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation's Water Works Department has deployed over 100 tankers for supplying water in several localities. But public is not satisfied with this arrangement. "We have to face a lot of problems because of water crisis. The male members of our house can't go to work on time as the water tankers come only after 12 in the afternoon. Also, the tankers do not meet our requirements," said Vaishali, a Nagpur resident. The concerned officials said that they have taken steps to tap those places where the ground water levels have declined by about two metres. "The Talukas where the water level is less than two to three meters, we have fitted hand pumps and boring wells. The water column has to increase by 60 to 70 feet where the water level was initially pulled at 60 feet. We have started works for flushing and fracturing of bore-wells," said Chetan Gajbhiya, Deputy Director of Ground Water Department, Nagpur. The local residents, however, complain that the authorities take action only when the water crisis reaches a point of no return. The concerned authorities are turning a blind on the lowering of ground water level in Nagpur despite the fact that Maharashtra's Vidarbha region had faced similar problem during the last decade.
-May 1, 2009