Bengaluru water crisis: Water tanker prices capped; BJP warns of protests

Bengaluru is facing one of the worst water crises in recent years and water tankers running frequently on the city roads have become a common sight now.

Not only Bengaluru but other districts in Karnataka too are facing water woes due to poor rainfall in 2023. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has attributed the scanty rains to El Nino effect.

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) as well as the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) are under pressure to provide water to people.

A BWSSB official said the situation is grim because the Krishnaraja Sagar Dam in Mandya district from where Cauvery water is supplied to Bengaluru does not have adequate water due to summer.

Water tankers at CM’s house

One can gauge the grim situation from the fact that water tankers were seen inside Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's office residence on Kumarakrupa Road in Bengaluru.

Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said the borewell in his house in Sadashivanagar in the state capital has gone dry for the first time. This happened despite the fact that Sadashivanagar is located next to Sankey Lake.

Cap on water tanker prices

On normal days, the water suppliers used to charge Rs 700 to Rs 800 per tanker but due to excess demand, they are charging somewhere between Rs 1,500 and Rs 1,800 per tanker, according to Shivakumar.

The office-bearers of the Residents' Welfare Associations (RWA) in the city are facing the brunt of its members for doing nothing to save them from the water crisis.

"We are a family of six members. A tanker of water lasts for five days even if we use it judiciously. It means we need six-tankers of water a month, which will cost us about Rs 9,000 a month. How long can we spend money like this?" Sharaschandra, a resident of Uttarahalli in Bengaluru, said.

Deputy CM Shivakumar, who is in charge of Bengaluru Development, announced taking over private tankers and private borewells to meet the water demand in Bengaluru. Even milk tankers will be used to supply water.

The Bengaluru district administration has now fixed the rate for water per tanker.

Rates for tankers within a 5 km radius

Rs 600 for 6,000 litres water tanker

Rs 700 for 8,000 litres

Rs 1000 for 12,000 litres

For distances between 5 km and 10 km

Rs 750 for 6,000 litres

Rs 850 for 8,000 litres

Rs 1,200 for 12,000 litres

How IT firms are dealing with water woes

IT companies in Bengaluru’s Whitefield area are preparing to deal with the crisis.

Rajesh Mallya K, president of the Whitefield Area Commerce and Industries Association (WACIA), says industries are “prioritising”. The Association has 350 members with the majority of them IT firms.

“Even if a tech hub has 5,000 employees, with 20 litres of water per person a day, it means 1 lakh litres, and that means 10-12 tankers of water per day. As industries, we have learned to solve problems every time – be it supply chain disruptions during the Suez Canal blockage or other setbacks. Out-of-the-box thinking involves prioritising,” Mallya was quoted as saying by Times of India.

He said IT companies won’t be looking at production cuts. “We’ve made manufacturing commitments. For instance, OEMs supplying to automobile industries cannot give the excuse of water shortage.”

Coaching centre declares ‘emergency’

A coaching centre in Vijayanagar in Bengaluru asked its students to attend classes online due to an 'emergency' for a week.

Similarly, a school on Bannerghatta Road in the city shut down, asking the students to attend classes virtually.

The 'emergency' is the acute water crisis.

136 taluks drought hit in State

According to Siddaramaiah, out of 136 taluks in Karnataka, 123 taluks have been declared drought-hit and 109 are severely affected.

The Karnataka government has also decided to set up taluk-level control rooms and a helpline to address water problems.

Taluk-level task forces led by the area MLA have been set up to ensure water supply and an adequate supply of fodder for cattle.

According to IMD scientist A Prasad, there was an El Nino effect last year, which is moderate this year too but is likely to decline.

Its effect was evident as summer set in the third and fourth week of February, which otherwise happens only in March in Bengaluru, he explained.

Bengaluru recorded 36 degree Celsius temperature on Wednesday (March 6), the officer said.

"36 degree Celsius was not the highest. There were occasions when temperatures went up to 37.3 degree in March, 1986 but that happened towards the end of the month. We still have 24 days to go this March," Prasad pointed out.

Politics over water crisis

The Bengaluru water crisis issue has taken a political turn with the Opposition BJP and JD (S) blaming the ruling Congress for the current situation.

The BJP has warned of protests if the problem is not solved soon. Bengaluru South BJP MP Tejasvi Surya said the Congress had failed the citizens of the city.

“Congress has failed the citizens of Bengaluru. City's water crisis has been neglected with unscientific remedial measures being taken in the eleventh hour,” Surya wrote on X (Twitter).

He said he met BWSSB Chairman and proposed scientific solutions to address the crisis on a war footing.

“If the State Government fails to address them, Karnataka BJP will take the streets and fight for Bengaluru's cause,” he warned.

(With agency inputs)