Mumbai: We’re still not sure our water is safe to use, say Bandra residents

A concrete road near D’Monte Park in Bandra West was dug up on August 29 to locate the source of the contamination. Pic/Prasun Choudhari

More than two weeks after learning that water being supplied to them contained coliform bacteria and red worms, residents of buildings near D'Monte Park in Bandra West are still relying on bottled water. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) took more time than expected to collect water samples for testing at its laboratory after telling residents it had detected the source of contamination and rectified the issue. The results are awaited. Residents, meanwhile, have sent samples to private labs and are waiting for the results.

Water that was supplied to housing societies was murky and contained red worms

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After mid-day highlighted the issue in its August 30 edition, the waterworks department of the BMC's H West ward on Friday informed locals via a WhatsApp message that the civic body was of the opinion that the source of contamination was St Andrew's Road. The message also stated that water samples were to be collected from the area for testing at the civic body laboratory on August 31 (Saturday). A D'Monte Park Road resident told mid-day, "BMC officials had visited the area but they did not collect any samples on Saturday. We are not sure why this was the case."

Asked about this, an official from the ward said, "A water supply system upgrade had been scheduled for quite some time, even before the complaint of the presence of E coli or other visible impurities were spotted and private lab water test reports were brought to our attention. For this upgrade, roads beyond the affected area were to be dug up to lay a new 750-mm diameter inlet pipeline."

The official added, "Due to this [digging the roads and changing the pipeline], the water supplied to D'Monte Park Road area was murky. Our officials had visited the locality to collect water samples but on seeing the water, decided to wait for a day till the murky water had cleared as we do not send such samples to the laboratory for testing. As of September 4, the samples are being analysed at the laboratory and results are awaited."

A resident told mid-day, "The stench has disappeared from tap water and the liquid seems much clearer now. But we are not sure if it is free of E coli and coliform bacteria. We still are using bottled water for drinking and cooking purposes. BMC officials have sent a sample for testing to the laboratory. We just hope that the issue, as they (BMC) claim, has been resolved and we can use the tap water for our daily needs."

The resident added, "We have also sent samples to private labs for testing just to be sure. It is not that we do not trust the civic laboratory report. It is better to be safe than sorry."

‘Buying bottled water'

A resident disclosed that they had to keep buying 20-litre bottles of water every two days for drinking and cooking purposes. The resident said, "This is not just the case with me but everyone in the area. A 20-litre bottle of water costs around R110 but it again depends on the vendor. We are two people in our flat and require one can over two days. If there are four people in a flat, they would require one can a day. Almost all residents are buying bottled water since August 18."

The resident said, "Even if we consider the rate of a water can to be R100 and three are 20 flats in a society, the whole society spends R2,000 a day on bottled water. There are 17 societies in the area that brings the cost up to Rs 34,000 on bottled water almost every day. Approximately, R5,78,000 has been spent only on drinking water during these days."