Due to water scarcity and the IMD’s warning of a heatwave, water tanker demand in Hyderabad has increased significantly. Areas such as S R Nagar experience high bookings, while the IT corridor receives greater water supply to meet expanding demand.
HYDERABAD : The demand for water tankers in the megacity further than doubled between January and March this time, with the number of yearly passages surging from 51,000 to1.18 lakh. In the first 20 days of April alone, tankers clocked 52,000 passages across Greater Hyderabad with water board officers awaiting a farther jump in figures till May, given the failure of water and IMD’s vaticination of further heatwave days this summer season. As per the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply & Sewerage Board( HMWSSB) data, areas that are witnessing maximum demand are S R Nagar, Asif Nagar, Kukatpally, Nizampet, and Ramchandrapuram. Between April 1 and 18, Ramchandrapuram in the megacity’s fringe made over 20,000 tanker bookings loftiest so far.
Falling water table in the city adds to the situation.
While the usual bookings hang in the 800 to 1,000 per day range, they have suddenly surged to 1,200 to 1,700 per day. Officers attribute this to a sharp drop in groundwater position in the bustling civic sprawl. While the water board inventories water at 500 for 5,000 litres, private tanker superintendences are presently charging 1,500 for the same volume. In SR Nagar too, the average tanker booking per day jumped from 900 to 1,200, with 17,000 tankers servicing the area in March. So far in April, the water board has received close to 15,000 bookings. ” We’re awaiting this figure to touch 25,000 in the coming couple of weeks, with the number doubling by May,” an elderly water board functionary said. Locals say the accumulating of domestic and marketable complexes then’s performing in overexploitation of groundwater.” It’s largely marketable, with hundreds of coaching centres, caravansaries, etc. crowding SR Nagar. Job announcements have also led to numerous applicants staying back in the caravansaries for coaching,” said B Prasanna Reddy, a occupant of S R Nagar( Ameerpet), adding,” This has reduced stay times. While the water board delivered a tanker within 12 hours from the time of booking, it now takes 24 to 36 hours. Though private tankers deliver in less time, they also charge extravagant rates.” Groundwater reduction has added to the water straits since then. Locals say they have had to dig up to 1,000 to 1,500 bases to get water. The IT corridor, which has been seeing a huge rush for tankers, is now better equipped to handle the situation with the water board allocating fresh force for the area. For example, while the board entered 5,260 tanker bookings from Manikonda in February, in April( over to April 20), it dropped to 2,500. An original functionary said the board has increased the force in the corridor by two million gallons per day, up from the former 5 million gallons.” Despite the rush, we’re trying to deliver all tankers within 12 to 48 hours. In some cases, we’re delivering within 10 hours, depending on the distance of the consumer delivery and tanker volume,” the elderly functionary said.
