Mumbai: Malabar Hill Reservoir Repair To Hit SoBo Water Supply

Mumbai: To carry out repairs to Malabar Hill Reservoir (MHR), the BMC will have to stop the water supply during the work. So, the civic body will now seek a plan to repair the reservoir without disrupting the water supply of south Mumbai. However, even if it requires tanks for the time being, the iconic Hanging Garden will not be affected by the work, assured a senior civic official.

Guardian minister (suburb) MangalPrabhat Lodha, who also represents the Malabar Hill constituency in south Mumbai, announced on Friday that the Rs 698 crore plan to reconstruct the reservoir would be scrapped and instead, it would only be repaired. The procedure will be completed in the next seven days. Meanwhile, after inspection of the reservoir last week, the expert team of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee has informed BMC that the reservoir can be repaired, but it cannot be used during the work. The final report from the team is yet to be submitted to the BMC.

"We had to empty the reservoir during inspections carried out in December and last week. The water supply to many parts of south Mumbai was affected during this period. So, before carrying out repairs, we will have to be ready with an alternate plan for water supply," said a senior civic official. As per an earlier proposal, the BMC had plans to construct an alternative tank, which would require felling several fully grown trees. However, the civic body is now working on how to carry out repairs without affecting the water supply as well as trees or the garden.

The reservoir constructed in 1887, beneath the Hanging Garden, supplies 147 million litres of water per day to south Mumbai. The reconstruction of the reservoir would have affected Hanging Garden and 389 fully grown trees. So, the locals have raised a voice against the proposal.