Record number of tankers are sole source of water in large parts of state. Behind the crisis, late monsoon following a deficit year, depleting groundwater in 279 talukas, under 10% live storage in 13 key reservoirs.
Maharashtra is facing a water emergency of unprecedented proportions. Following years of drought, the rivers’ currents have ebbed, water in dams and reservoirs has depleted and over-exploitation of groundwater has raised concerns over the long-term availability of water.
With the weather department forecasting a delayed onset of monsoon, the state government has now deployed the highest ever number of water tankers — 6,597 as of June 10 — to meet the drinking water needs of parched regions. This is over three times the number of tankers deployed around this time last year (1,777). In 2016, due to another deficient monsoon, 6,016 tankers were deployed during peak scarcity.
* How severe is the water crisis in Maharashtra?
Until June 3, residents of 5,127 villages and 10,867 hamlets were solely dependent on tanker water supply for their daily needs. Between May 20 and June 3 alone, 512 villages and 728 hamlets were added to the list of areas being catered.
More than half the tankers have been deployed in Marathwada, which is the worst-hit region. These include 1,146 tankers in Aurangabad, where more than 761 villages are facing water shortage, and 939 tankers in Beed (652 villages).
Please click here to read more.