Water pilferage by people who tap into the main supply lines has turned out to be a major headache for the BWSSB. According to a rough estimate, the city has a shortage of 300 MLD (million liters per day) of water. The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board’s (BWSSB) crackdown 5,000 illegal water connections in the city between June 1 and 15 has brought to light. The board, however, said it has no clue about the total number of pilferers in the city. According to source, nearly 34 per cent of water supplied to Bangalore goes unaccounted for because of this water theft.
After a hot summer that brought Bangalore to its knees, the BWSSB will begin a pilot project in 11 wards of the city to supply water 24/7. Currently, the board supplies water to Bangalore on alternate days, which is also erratic.The board said the new project will not increase the demand for water. “When you supply water 24/7, you save a lot of water, because people stop throwing the water stored in buckets and refilling them once they get fresh water,” said Ramamurthy. Despite this drive, the board still has no clue about the total number of illegal connections in the city. “The idea is to regularize the illegal connections so that we can manage the available water better,” said Ramamurthy.
