Water, water everywhere but not a drop to spare, and therefore every drop should be used judiciously; this was the mantra of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) cell which is campaigning for optimum use of water.

The RWH cell has come up with a study which reveals how 290.25 million litres per day (MLD) is wasted unknowingly across the city. The civic body will share this study with resident associations and hotels in the city with an aim to sensitise them.

Statistics reveal that water is wasted because people leave the tap water running while shaving, wash vehicles with pipe water and throw half-filled glasses of water in hotels. The same water can be used across households for various secondary purposes.

“People unknowingly waste a lot of water. For example, leaving the tap water running results in wastage of 198.75 MLD. Such practices add to water crisis. This water can be collected and used for various secondary purposes,” said Suprabha Marathe, assistant engineer of BMC’s RWH cell.

As hotels and restaurants are often targetted for wasting water, the civic body has come up with suggestions for them to avoid the wastage of water. The suggestions include usage of water taps made of ceramic cartridges, photo electric sensor taps and unused half filled glasses of water for gardening purposes.

“Often people think that only five star hotels waste water because they have luxury factors like bath tubs, but those are just a small percentage. There are hordes of restaurants and small-time hotels which are equally infamous for wasting water. We need to counsel them,” said Marathe.

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