Water tankers on strike, hsg soc, hotel supply hit

With rising mercury, Mumbai will face the brunt of water shortage, besides the ongoing power cuts. The water tanker association is on strike. The supply to housing societies, hotels, railways, malls, airports, animal shelters, construction sites and infra projects has begun to get disrupted.

The association spokesperson Ankur Sharma said that the strike has been underway since Monday night because of the “absurd new rules” issued by Central Ground Water Authority and alleged harassment by the BMC. He said, “We are protesting the new guidelines, which are arbitrary and next to impossible to comply with. Despite several representations, the government has not resolved our issues, forcing us to withdraw water supply until further notice.” He added that unless the guidelines are re-evaluated, the strike will not be called off.

The new rules mandate compulsory parking for tankers, satellite metres for ground water uplifting and salinity tests, which are not feasible for water tanker operators in urban areas like Mumbai with high real estate costs.

Around 2.5 lakh water tankers supply potable and non-potable water to Mumbai and the demand is high during summers. Earlier, the Mumbai Water Association had gone on strike in January, demanding that they should be regularised in lieu of water tanker owners willing to pay legal fees. Water tanker suppliers were resenting the BMC action, leading to an impasse, with the tanker Association adamant that their demands for regularisation be met without delay.