Mid-Day Impact | Safe drinking water: Not a pipe dream anymore

Following a series of reports in midday on water contaminated with faecal matter at Subramaniam Nagar and LBS Nagar slums of Santacruz East BMC is constructing a new pipeline that it says will solve their water woes forever The then municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal took cognizance of the matter and forwarded an email with middayrsquos reports to the assistant municipal commissioner AMC and to the hydraulics engineerSleep deprivation dependency on painkillers skin ailments absenteeism from work due to illness high medical expenses causing inability to pay for childrenrsquos education caused by toxic water provided to residents of Subramaniam Nagar may reduce after the new pipeline is constructed by the BMC in the area However having suffered for seven long years the residents are scepticalFormer BMC chief IS Chahalrsquos email citing middayrsquos reportsldquoI have been getting contaminated water every day for seven years for no fault of mine Despite being a victim I have to pay the establishment for enduring this injusticerdquo said Nitin Kamble representing the Community Based Organisation CBO of the area midday has complaint letters on water dating back seven yearsAn assistant engineer overlooking the project wants to assure residents that this is a permanent solution ldquoThe results will do the talking A lot of money is being invested in this work to ensure nothing goes wrong Residentsrsquo concerns of murky water and inadequate pressure will disappear after the project is completedrdquoDifference of opinionThe BMC blames residents passing their pipes through the open drains for the contamination and the disadvantaged position of the slum dwellings for the inadequate pressure Residents counter that the cleaner route has inadequate pressure and in their experience have resulted in water shortage BMC agrees that the cleaner route works well for nearby housing societies as the main pipe reduces in size as it reaches the slum because of its position The hand pumps are a testament that even the nullah route may not ensure sufficient supply However commenting on the clean water with adequate pressure that followed for a day after middayrsquos first report on the issue residents now claim that this is proof that the municipal water works department could allot adequate water to the slum Residents fear that people who may not benefit from the new pipeline will resort to taking their pipes through the drains and thus making this entire exercise futile In August 2023 midday tested faecal matter and an unusual 300 units of E Coli and the monsoon make the water significantly more dangerousBhanumati Yadav says she has rashes on her back right Suman Mishra says he has constant redness on his chestWater at the cost of sleepmidday saw residents make several attempts to pump water past midnight until sunrise corroborating their claim that their pursuit of water robs them of their sleep as there is no fixed time when the less murky water will flow For most it takes 30 minutes to an hour of the physically demanding task of pumping out dark black water until a little clearer yet dirty form comes out for 15 minutes which they put to domestic use Bhanumati Yadav claimed she wakes up every two hours in hope of getting clearer water giving her 34 hours of unsound sleep every night This new pipeline might help her sleep better She takes the medicines which makes her nauseous for the pain she experiences resulting from pumpingldquoThe lack of sleep and side effects of the medicines have made me lifeless I used to have suicidal thoughts My eyes burn my head is constantly hurting I get irritable which impacts my relationships I keep my pain to myselfrdquo she saidMunicipal workers laying the new pipeline in Santacruz EastSkin ailments are common in the locality ldquoI wonder which part of my body will start itching after having a bath in this water I come back home from a hard day of labour craving for a refreshing bath especially in the summers but this is what I live withrdquo said Suman Mishra who has a constant redness and boils on his chest Skin lotion for eczema itch and ringworm has become a regular item for the Sharma family His wife Meenarsquos skin ailment is worse as skin lotions only give her temporary reliefRegular bills yet no waterNo water comes out of Sarita Gaikwadrsquos connection yet she is expected to pay her bills Kurade Bhimraorsquos first threemonthly bill of 2023 is Rs 592 and the last bill of the year is Rs 673 ldquoI source my water from elsewhere so how did they come up with these figures They have never come into our slum to read the meters hence we did not pay attention to its maintenance and many of the meters get damaged when utility contractors carry out their workrdquo said BhimraoMathew Mattam founder Centre for Youth Development and ActivitiesWith pending bills it will not be easy to get connection to the new pipeline Kamble has no amount due he will be eligible for the reconnection to the new pipe However for people like Shankar Jha who have not paid their bills it is expected to be a problem ldquoHow can I afford to buy clean water from elsewhere and pay the municipal bills at the same time Why should I pay for water which could kill me I would have considered paying if our meter readings are recorded like they do for buildingsrdquo Jha said He added that unlike the company that provides power the municipal corporation doesnrsquot even bother to deliver the water bills to their residence The bunch of bills is dumped in a place and it is up to the residents to look for their water bill Jha saidTrickle effect on economyFor Arjun Lokhande clean water could mean the ability to pay his childrenrsquos school fees and not miss out on work opportunities due to sickness He said ldquoI have missed out on work contracts worth Rs 2 lakh because of water borne diseases My hardwork and dreams are failing because of repeated sicknessrdquo His medical records reveal septic shock and low haemoglobinProfessor Vibhuti Patel retired department of economics SNDT Womenrsquos University speaking about the toll that lack of access to potable water might have on the economy said ldquoAccording to the human capital formation approach investment in the health of human beings is crucial to economic development If preventive health care in terms of public health intervention for Water and Sanitation and Hygiene WASH is not ensured the population will be falling ill frequently due to vectorborne diseases As a result absenteeism at work increasesrdquoPatel added that the government can reduce the strain on healthcare systems and reduce medical expenditures from the budget if clean WASH services are provided to the poor ldquoThis will also greatly improve the physical quality of life index The United Nations has established the costtobenefit ratio in investing in WASH is 15rdquo she saidMatiKalp water filtersCentre for Youth Development and Activities CYDA was ready to distribute 400 MatiKalp water filters to the residents but put it on hold due to this BMCrsquos announcement to lay a new pipeline CYDA founder Mathew Mattam said ldquoWe have been tracking the developments of the slum through midday and wanted to help out to provide safe drinking water as a fundamental human right We will wait and analyse for some more time and if the problem resurfaces we will distribute the water filtersrdquo At CYDArsquos 25th anniversary celebrations Anand Shekhar additional mission director of NITI Ayog said that clean water sanitation and hygiene is a fundamental human right and the foundation of human development