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Dattawadi, 23rd August 2024: Daily, 40 lakh litres of water is being wasted from the Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) water canals. Reports indicate that this is due to encroachment on the canal, located behind the Pune-Okayama Friendship Garden (PL Deshpande Garden). The encroachment, carried out by soil filling, is causing water leakage. The pressure from the soil could potentially cause the canal to break. Aware of the situation, the PMC attempted to take action but faced opposition.

Two water canals, with diameters of 2500 mm and 3000 mm, run from Khadakwasla Dam to the Parvati Water Purification Plant. From these canals, 1100 MLD of water is drawn daily. Behind PL Deshpande Garden, land has been created by filling the water canal with soil up to a height of around 2.5 meters. Activities are also being conducted under the name of a ‘prominent’ figure.

Placing the soil on the water canal has caused water to start leaking due to the pressure. This leakage has been ongoing for the past several months. The PMC has made several attempts to remove the encroachment, but the locals have not responded positively.

The PMC finally began removing the encroachment using a JCB yesterday, but it faced opposition. PMC officials explained the situation to the citizens, stating that it was necessary to remove the filling. However, as the opposition persisted, the PMC halted the operation to resolve the issue through discussion.

The capacity of these two canals is the same as that of the Khadakwasla canal. Therefore, if the water canal bursts, it could lead to damage similar to that caused by the canal bursting at Dandekar Bridge. This could result in significant damage, so the encroachment needs to be removed.

Nandkishore Jagtap, head of the water supply department, stated, “Due to the encroachment on the water canal, leakage has begun, causing 40 lakh litres of water to be wasted every day. Therefore, this encroachment must be removed.”

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