NAVI MUMBAI: Navi Mumbai residents could see their daily water allowance reduced to 150 litres per person down from 200 litres, despite the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation’s (NMMC) general body rejecting formal water cuts on Friday. The civic administration also plans to reduce withdrawals from Morbe dam by 80 million litres per day (MLD), effectively tightening consumption even as elected representatives insist that household drinking-water supplies remain unaffected.

NMMC plans 150-litre daily water cap despite general body rejecting cuts

At a special general body meeting, municipal commissioner Dr Kailas Shinde said the civic body would regulate supply according to the prescribed norm and focus on curbing unnecessary consumption.

“The prescribed norm is 150 litres per person per day. The administration will regulate supply accordingly and reduce unnecessary consumption, while ensuring that drinking water is not denied to citizens,” Shinde said.

The plan is to reduce daily withdrawals from Morbe dam from 480 MLD to 400 MLD. The state government’s October 5 directive called for at least a 10% cut from October 16 and protection of drinking-water reserves through August 31, 2027. Authorities have also been asked to maintain a 10% emergency buffer in dams.

Mayor Sujata Patil passed a resolution asking the administration to manage available water efficiently and maintain supplies under the criteria set by the general body, without imposing cuts.

The civic body had proposed saving 25-30 MLD in the first phase and 35-40 MLD in the second. An additional 50.6 MLD from MIDC is expected from December 1.

House leader Sagar Naik said the focus should be on curbing waste rather than reducing household drinking-water supplies. Gardens, car washing, service centres and construction sites were among the areas where potable-water use could be reduced, he said.

Naik credited forest minister Ganesh Naik with securing Morbe dam water for the city and questioned the supply of water to other areas without the general body’s permission. He argued that better management of the existing allocation would make cuts unnecessary.

He also called for pressure regulation and flow meters, and suggested using treated wastewater or borewell water for gardens and other non-drinking purposes. Gardens alone consume an estimated 25-30 MLD, according to the administration’s figures.

But Shiv Sena’s Navi Mumbai chief and corporator Kishor Patkar criticised the general body’s decision, calling the rejection of cuts “childish politics”.

“Water is a national resource. We have been fortunate to have supplies, but that does not mean we can use water indiscriminately while other cities face cuts,” Patkar said. He warned that the state could reconsider Navi Mumbai’s allocation if water was not conserved.

Patkar also questioned the use of drinking water at construction sites and called for separate supply systems for potable and non-potable uses. He cited projects in New Kharghar where developers had reportedly installed wells or borewells and separate pipelines.

The administration plans to make dual sumps and dual piping mandatory in new buildings and extend treated-water connections to housing societies. Four tertiary treatment plants, each with a capacity of 20 MLD, are proposed in Nerul, Sanpada, Vashi and Ghansoli to supply treated water for non-potable uses.

Water meters are to be installed on unmetered connections within two months. Vehicle-washing centres using potable water will also face action, the administration said.