Kolhapur civic body raises frequent water scarcity issue

Kolhapur: The Kolhapur Municipal Corporation's general body meeting held on Friday saw corporators expressing strong displeasure over the frequent water cuts and growing water scarcity in several parts of the city. They also questioned the large number of unauthorised water connections in fringe villages surrounding Kolhapur city and demanded that these connections be regularised to help KMC levy water charges and increase its revenue.Shiv Sena corporator Sharangdhar Deshmukh said the issue of unauthorised water connections from Temblaiwadi to Phulewadi was serious, causing a significant loss in water tax revenue. "Instead of disconnecting, these water connections should be regularised so that revenue can be generated. When city residents are not getting water supply, whyKMC is supplying water to those from rural areas?" he said.Congress corporator Rajesh Latkar stressed the need for strict action against water leakages and water theft. "A building located just 100 meters from KMC headquarters receives 1 MLD of water without any action being taken. The shortage of water tankers in the city is serious," Latkar said.Responding to these concerns, KMC water supply engineer said rural areas had 6,707 active water connections, with arrears of Rs 1.75 crore still pending. "Although new rural water connections have been stopped since 2019, action will be taken against any unauthorised connections. A total of Rs 16 crore in water tax remains unrecovered. Proper water supply within the city is expected only after the completion of Amrut Scheme works, which may take at least two more months," the official said.The meeting also saw heated discussions on other civic issues, including drainage, garbage management, poor road conditions, stray animal problems, and gas pipeline issues. Congress corporator Jayashree Chavan raised concerns about women's safety, noting that many street lights were non-functional. Another resolution to give three-month extension for the gunthewari regularisation was also approved in the meeting. Water cuts on Feb 23Residents of Shivaji Peth and Mangalwar Peth would not receive water on Monday due to ongoing work to cross-connect the water pipeline under the central govt–funded Amrut Water Supply Scheme to the tank at Panyacha Khajina.