For the last three months, my mornings have been hectic. I need to ensure that all the household work is done before noon. That means cooking, cleaning, bathing, and filling water for miscellaneous purposes. That’s not a deadline set by me but by the maintenance team of my society in the Harlur area of Bengaluru, who have taken a call to stop the daily water supply from 12 pm to 3 pm.
Ironically, the City of Lakes has been facing severe water shortages for the last few months. I live in a multi-tower society, and we have had water issues since January 2024.
The Silicon City of India is drying up even before the summer arrives. And we don’t know how long the water cut will last or will it get worse. The team has not given a deadline.
So far, we are facing a water cut, but no other steps have been taken to conserve water. I read that some RWAs have requested residents to use wipes and disposable cutleries and not wash their cars as measures to save water. The situation is worse than I expected in some parts of the city. In fact, I know a few friends who only receive one hour of water daily. I feel, we are far better placed than them, but then I fear for how long.
Water tankers arrive in our society daily. We have more than 10 towers, so there is one tanker for each tower. But this is not the case every day. Sometimes, the supply is less. It all depends upon the availability of the tankers.
On 6 March, the Bengaluru district administration capped the prices charged by water tankers from the residents. Thank god, they did that.
Our maintenance bills have increased by Rs 500-1000 from this month as water tankers are charging exorbitant rates.
I have been living in Bengaluru since 2019, and this is the first time I have seen such a sad state of affairs.
Most societies don’t have rainwater harvesting facilities, and the underground water level is so low that borewells don't work either. There has not been enough rain in the region, which has caused the water level in the Cauvery River to drop.
I never realised that the city hadn’t received adequate rainfall till it impacted us.
I’m sure bigger families face more problems than a few of us with the water shortage. Weekdays are still manageable, but the weekends are a problem because everyone is at home. There is more demand than supply.
We are in a society of fairly well-to-do people, so we can afford the increased water prices and maintenance charges. I am not sure what people who can’t afford it are doing. This is an absolute nightmare and could get worse if not fixed soon. This is what unplanned growth does to a city.
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