Residents of Blue Ridge Township in Hinjewadi are worried because they do not have access to clean, quality water, even though it is a basic fundamental right for all.
The first complaint in this regard was raised by residents in Feb this year, as reported by TOI (‘Red bloodworms in water raise alarm in Hinjewadi’, Feb 16). Four months on, the issue persists.
Residents here have multiple complaints about the water that comes to them from the
Mula river
, ranging from bloodworms to stench to infections.
Township resident Geeta Shirolkar told TOI that the stink emanating from the water they are supplied is nauseating. “The odour is terrible, and the water is always muddy, too. We have started getting bottled water from outside for drinking and have no option but to use the supplied water for bathing and other activities.
However, it is a constant worry, since our utensils and vegetables get washed in this dirty water. Had I known about this issue, I probably would not have bought a house here. Water is the most important commodity today,” Shirolkar said.
She is not the only one. Resident Nitish Jain has also been buying bottled water for drinking purposes, while their family struggles with the problematic supply in their taps.
“My five-year-old daughter got an infection because of the water. It was difficult to see her in so much pain. We have now started rotating alum in our bathing water till the mud settles down, and then we use just the clear parts. This takes at least half an hour for every bath,” Jain lamented.
After the township receives water from the Mula river, it goes through a
water treatment plant
set up by the builder. From here, it is then supplied to 26 towers in the township, each of whom also have their own water treatment plant.
“Even though there are multiple levels of filtration, the water is still extremely dirty,” said Ramneet Kaur, another resident of the township, adding, “It’s a real pitiable situation. We are deprived of something as basic as this vital resource.”
Meanwhile, the township is set to get more residential towers as well. Residents claim reports of red bloodworms appearing in the filters in some tower or the other emerge almost daily.
While they have been coordinating and talking to the township and builder for a solution, it has been in vain. The river is the only source of water for the township.
Most homes here have installed multiple levels of filtration, but despite this the water they receive is far from potable.
“There are more than 25,000 families living in this township and everyone gets bad quality water. Many societies are located up-stream to us, and all their sewage is released into the river. A lot needs to be done to find an effective long-term solution to the issue of river pollution. Today, the pollution is so high that even treatment plants are clearly unable to deal with it,” resident Rajeev Singh pointed out.
English (US) ·