October 24th 2023.
Residents of Mumbai have been up in arms against the BMC's decision to reconstruct the Malabar Hill Reservoir at a cost of Rs 698.5 crore. Recently, three civil engineers have joined the local residents in requesting the BMC to consider repairing the existing reservoir instead of constructing a new one. They have sent an open letter to Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, urging him to put a stop to the project in the interest of the citizens.
The engineers, Shirish Patel, Alpa Sheth, and Dr. Vasudev V. Nori, believe that the reservoir is in good condition and that increasing its capacity does not add to the water supply. They argued that reconstructing the British-era reservoir is a fraud being perpetrated on the citizens of Mumbai.
The proposal to reconstruct the reservoir was made in 2019 after a structural audit. The civic standing committee approved the project in February 2022. The plan is to increase the capacity of the reservoir from 147.78 million litres to 191 million litres to augment the water supply to South Mumbai. However, the project also requires cutting down 389 trees on the earmarked plot.
In response to the opposition from local residents, a core committee of locals has been formed to suggest alternate locations for reservoirs. Meanwhile, Mumbai Guardian Minister Deepak Kesarkar recently assured the residents that he will re-audit the project. The next day, however, bulldozers were seen back in action at the construction site.
It is clear that the citizens of Mumbai are not in favour of the BMC's decision to reconstruct the Malabar Hill Reservoir. The citizens, as well as the civil engineers, are asking for the project to be stopped and for an exploration of repair options. The repurcussions of the project could be detrimental to the citizens and nature - the project requires cutting down many trees and could be a fraud. It's time for the BMC to reconsider its decision and take the citizens' demands into account.
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