Pune: Pavana Dam Is Half Empty; Irrigation Department Appeals To Use Water Carefully
Pimpri, 25th March 2023: Pavana Dam in Maval, which provides water to the citizens of Pimpri-Chinchwad, currently has 48.93 percent water storage. The said storage is sufficient till the end of July and on this date last year the water storage was 49.03 percent. Compared to last year, the water storage is one percent less. Though the water storage is sufficient, the Irrigation Department has appealed to use water sparingly.
Pavana Dam, which is the main source of water for various villages in the Maval region including Pimpri-Chinchwad, has a comfortable water supply till the end of March this year. Due to good rains in the catchment area this year, the dam was 100 percent full three times. 2,777 mm of rain was recorded in the catchment area this year.
So, last year 2,722 mm of rain was recorded. 55 mm more rainfall than last year has been recorded. By the end of August, the Pavana Dam was overflowing.
Even in March, the dam has 48.93 percent water storage. This water storage is sufficient till the end of July. Hence, city dwellers are unlikely to face severe water shortages in summer.
However, now summer is on its way. This will increase water consumption. Due to the evaporation, the water storage in the dam will decrease. Therefore, the Irrigation Department has appealed to the citizens to use water sparingly.
Since the water supply in the city was disturbed even though there was 100 percent water storage in Pavana Dam, the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) started water supply every other day from 25th November 2019, giving the reason for equitable water distribution. This water cut was to be till 25th January 2020.
However, the Municipal Corporation continued the cuts indefinitely. It has been 3.3 years. Citizens are demanding daily water supply. On the other hand, the citizens are getting abundant water as the water supply continues every other day. The administration claims that there has also been a reduction in the number of water complaints.
The city will get 267 MLD of water from two dams namely Andhra and Bhama Askhed. 100 MLD of water from the Andhra Dam will come to the city in the first phase. In the then-ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), the administrators repeatedly gave ‘deadlines’ for this additional water to come to the city. But, it has not yet been followed. The residents of the city have not yet received water.
The water treatment plant at Chikhli has been completed to treat water from Andhra Dam. The work of the impure water abstraction center at Nighoj has also been completed. Despite this, the opposition alleges that the city dwellers have been deprived of increased water due to the mere lack of inauguration. The administrators say that the work of the water treatment plant is still going on and tests are being done. City dwellers are waiting as to when they will get more water.
Sameer More, Pavana Branch Engineer Pavana Dam, said, “Dam currently has 48.93 percent water storage. This water storage is sufficient till the end of July. Citizens should use water sparingly even if there is a sufficient water supply. So that we do not have to face water shortage in the future.”
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