Parched Delhi falls prey to water mafia
16 Jun 2012 12:44 AM GMT
The drinking water scarcity in Delhi has upped the water mafia stake in the business. For instance, Millennium Post got to know about a factory in Sangam Vihar of south Delhi that bottles ground water in branded bottles and cans that were dumped by the users in garbage.
The factory is run by a Santosh, who had apparently installed his water plant for Rs 4 lakh and has been bottling ground water for sometime now. The local police and the MLA of Sangam Vihar claim that they were unaware of this illegal factory.
Supplying untreated water in branded bottles has become the easiest way to earn money in Delhi in summers. It does not cost much to venture into this business.
The cost of installing a simple bore-well varies from Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh. In theory, in order to bore a tube-well or a bore-well in a ‘notified area’, one has to acquire permission from the Central Ground Water Authority [CGWA].
Given the laxity in enforcement of the laws by CGWA, the private water suppliers are able to dig wells in notified as well as unnotified areas with equal ease. The fleet size of a water supplier varies from 2-25 tankers depending on the size of the business.
The water tanks provided by Delhi Jal Board [DJB] serve unauthorised colonies and slum areas mostly.
And as the service is few and far between, people who could afford, opt for private tankers instead of waiting their turn. This in turn aid the flourishing business of the water mafias.
Interestingly, Delhi Jal Board, which supplies an average of 50 gallons per capita per day of filtered water through a network of water treatment plants, booster pumping stations and about 9,000 km of water mains and distribution system, has also failed as far as quality is concerned.
In a test conducted by Municipal Corporation of Delhi at various districts, it was revealed that the water supplied by the DJB in some areas is unfit to drink. While the results differ in different regions, generally it is held that water supplied to north Delhi is unfit while in south Delhi it is good enough for drinking. About 250 private water suppliers are active in Delhi.
They charge according to the area and the rates fluctuate between Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,500.
MOB JAMS HIGHWAY TO PROTEST WATER, POWER CRISIS
Outraged by the escalating water and electricity crisis, Delhi residents jammed the highway in Alipur area. The mob reportedly caused damage to two DTC buses and pelted stones at the police when they tried to pacify them.
According to the police, residents of Tikri village of Alipur spilled out on to the road on Friday afternoon showing anger against power and water scarcity in their area. They alleged that the electricity officials were intentionally cutting them off.
Around 12 pm on Friday, a mob comprising hundreds of men, women and children gathered at NH1 and started raising slogans against Delhi government and power officials. Some protesters started throwing stones at government officials, police officials said. They apparently broke windshields and windows of two DTC buses and threw stones at some private vehicles as well. However, no one was injured in the scuffle.
‘The mob allegedly pelted stones at cops,’ said an official.
After four hours of stand-off between police and the mob, the situation was brought under control. Some people were detained by the police, but were let off later.
The factory is run by a Santosh, who had apparently installed his water plant for Rs 4 lakh and has been bottling ground water for sometime now. The local police and the MLA of Sangam Vihar claim that they were unaware of this illegal factory.
Supplying untreated water in branded bottles has become the easiest way to earn money in Delhi in summers. It does not cost much to venture into this business.
The cost of installing a simple bore-well varies from Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh. In theory, in order to bore a tube-well or a bore-well in a ‘notified area’, one has to acquire permission from the Central Ground Water Authority [CGWA].
Given the laxity in enforcement of the laws by CGWA, the private water suppliers are able to dig wells in notified as well as unnotified areas with equal ease. The fleet size of a water supplier varies from 2-25 tankers depending on the size of the business.
The water tanks provided by Delhi Jal Board [DJB] serve unauthorised colonies and slum areas mostly.
And as the service is few and far between, people who could afford, opt for private tankers instead of waiting their turn. This in turn aid the flourishing business of the water mafias.
Interestingly, Delhi Jal Board, which supplies an average of 50 gallons per capita per day of filtered water through a network of water treatment plants, booster pumping stations and about 9,000 km of water mains and distribution system, has also failed as far as quality is concerned.
In a test conducted by Municipal Corporation of Delhi at various districts, it was revealed that the water supplied by the DJB in some areas is unfit to drink. While the results differ in different regions, generally it is held that water supplied to north Delhi is unfit while in south Delhi it is good enough for drinking. About 250 private water suppliers are active in Delhi.
They charge according to the area and the rates fluctuate between Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,500.
MOB JAMS HIGHWAY TO PROTEST WATER, POWER CRISIS
Outraged by the escalating water and electricity crisis, Delhi residents jammed the highway in Alipur area. The mob reportedly caused damage to two DTC buses and pelted stones at the police when they tried to pacify them.
According to the police, residents of Tikri village of Alipur spilled out on to the road on Friday afternoon showing anger against power and water scarcity in their area. They alleged that the electricity officials were intentionally cutting them off.
Around 12 pm on Friday, a mob comprising hundreds of men, women and children gathered at NH1 and started raising slogans against Delhi government and power officials. Some protesters started throwing stones at government officials, police officials said. They apparently broke windshields and windows of two DTC buses and threw stones at some private vehicles as well. However, no one was injured in the scuffle.
‘The mob allegedly pelted stones at cops,’ said an official.
After four hours of stand-off between police and the mob, the situation was brought under control. Some people were detained by the police, but were let off later.
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