KOLKATA: The demand for Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s water tanks is at its peak as the heat-humidity combo continues to keep the city in its chokehold. The demand for water tankers has risen by about two-and-a-half times, according to KMC sources.
The civic body has pressed into service a fleet of 126 tankers that are currently undertaking 10 trips each and supply about 6 lakh litres of water to thousands of people everyday. During rest of the year, around 50 tankers undertake 10 trips each, according to the officials of the KMC water supply department.
One tanker contains 450 litres of water. “We take Rs 450 from beneficiaries for each trip. This is the transport cost and it is fixed,” said the official.
“This year, the mercury crossed 40°C on several days. Since last month, the humidity has added to the discomfort. This has spiked the demand for water tankers,” said a senior official of the KMC water supply department.
The civic body has over 200 tankers. While 126 tankers are only being used for supplying water to households,12 others are used for watering trees and the rest are kept on standby. All these tankers have different replenishing points like Convent Road near Moulali, Wellington Square, Bidhan Sarani near Goabagan, Kalighat, Poddar Nagar, Diamond Harbour Road and CGR Road.
The requisitions for water tankers are mostly coming from Behala, Garia, Bansdroni, Jadavpur, Santoshpur, Dhakuria, Kasba and the EM Bypass pockets that are under the KMC ambit. “In these areas, a large number of people depend on ground water. Hence they have to place requisitions for water tankers to tide over the shortage,” said the official.
“There is no designated number of tankers at the replenishing points. The drivers come to the nearby point to fill the tankers. Though the tanker service is available between 7am and 6pm, we are also providing the service in emergency cases even after the stipulated time,” said another official of water supply department. He indicated that the number of water tankers might be raised depending on the situation.
The residents of various housing complexes and highrises across the city are also availing of the KMC tankers. “The residents of these housing complexes face water issues due to technical snags in pumps or power problems. A rising number of demands from housing complexes for water tankers is pouring in at our department,” said the official.
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