Nagpur: Maharashtra govt is considering a 10% cut in urban water supply to conserve water as a buffer for June next year amid worsening scarcity, revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said on Tuesday.
Sources in his ministry, however, said the cuts are likely to be implemented from Feb onwards, depending on the severity of water scarcity and drought in individual districts.
In a statement issued here, Bawankule said the proposed priority for water use would be drinking water, fodder crops, rabi crops such as wheat and, finally, sugarcane. Village ponds and percolation tanks would be reserved for drinking water. Environment and Climate Change minister Pankaja Munde suggested temporarily suspending permissions for private and commercial construction in areas facing drinking-water shortages. Water Resources minister Girish Mahajan directed officials to disconnect electricity connections being used for water theft around lakes.
The proposal was discussed at a meeting of the drought relief cabinet subcommittee chaired by Bawankule in Mumbai on Tuesday.
Bawankule said planning must begin immediately to ensure water and fodder availability for the next 10 months while preparations for the rabi season continue. The state is currently supplying water through 560 tankers. Rural Development minister Jaykumar Gore proposed a plan to ensure drinking-water availability for 10 months, including deploying small tankers to hamlets and making scarcity funds available to officials at the local level.
“The Chief Secretary should constitute a committee of secretaries from three departments for this purpose,” he said. He also directed that an initial proposal for fodder camps be prepared under the chairmanship of the district collector. A committee comprising the Zilla Parishad chief executive officer and officials from the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry departments should prepare and finalise the proposal, with monitoring at the secretary level. The Kamptee MLA also suggested that Maharashtra study fodder-management measures adopted by other states and formulate a comprehensive plan suited to the state.