For Amita Pure, a resident of Tarapore Gardens in Oshiwara, the water cut brought about a change in her daily schedule. “For the past two weeks, we have been facing water cut for 2-3 hours. However, today the taps went dry by 9:30 am. Thankfully, since our society had put up a notice in this regard, my husband and children were prepared for the water cut. We finished all our water chores like bathing before 9.30 am.” Pure has stored five buckets of water in the bathroom and three small vessels of water in the kitchen to meet their needs before water supply resumes in the evening for two hours .

“We don’t have the luxury of getting hot water by switching on the geyser and using the washing machine at anytime. Water has to be heated on the gas stove and the clothes have to be washed when the taps supply water.”

Pure’s neighbour Vinita Singh has taken a slightly more optimistic view of the situation. Singh said, “Yes, I had to make many adjustments because of the water cut. But I feel that technically we don’t need as much water as we get. Mumbaikars waste a lot of water and such a cut will in fact make them realise the importance of using water judiciously.”

“After using plates for dry foods like wafers, I wipe them off with a cloth and reuse them. Also, I use night clothes twice before washing them.”

Ghatkopar-resident Dhruvesh Rathore, a late riser, didn’t get water to take a bath when he woke up on Tuesday. “My building (Giriraj, Neelkanth Valley) has hardly experienced water shortage.

However, today there was no water in the bathroom between 2 pm and 7pm. Our maid came to prepare the dishes but there was no water. Thankfully, enough drinking water was fetched in the morning. “

Meanwhile, situation at buildings, which have installed rain water harvesting plants, was different. Residents of the Punarvasu Co-operative Housing Society at Mira Road had installed a rain water harvesting plant on the terrace of the building at a cost of Rs 1,85,000 in 2007. The society has been getting 10,000 litres of additional water per day since 2007. Resident Ramesh Iyer said, “The rain water is conserved in a ring well dug in the ground. This water is used for flushing, washing cars and staircases, gardening etc. So eventhough we receive BMC water only once in 36 hours, it is sufficient for us as it is only used for cooking, drinking and bathing. Also, there is no maintenance cost for this.”

Cut yet to reach pools, spas
Despite the water shortage, swimming pools, spas and jacuzzis are still functioning at the hotels and clubs in the city. The BMC had decided to stop the water supply to swimming pools and spas for sometime. However, when Newsline contacted some of the leading clubs and hotels in the city, they said they were unaware about the move. The spokesperson for Trident Hotel and Goregaon Sports Club refused to comment saying that they had not received any official notice from the civic body. An official of the Acres Club, Chembur, said, “We are not aware of this move and the facilities are available as of now. If the BMC asks us to stop the usage of swimming pools, we will have to do so even if it affects our business.” ENS