Gurugram: Pipes laid in new sectors, but few builders apply for water connection

GURUGRAM: While around 30,000 families living in 18 new sectors of Gurgaon have been demanding piped water supply for several years now, developers of only 25 of the 56 housing projects along the Dwarka Expressway have applied for connection since August this year when the canal water supply began.

Seeing the lukewarm response, the department of town and country planning (DTCP) has now decided to issue notices to the remaining developers asking them to apply for the water connection within 15-20 days. Residents say they are being forced to depend on groundwater and water tankers even after paying the external and internal development charges for the same.

RS Batth, DTP (enforcement), said the matter was brought to the department’s notice during the recent Janata Darbar with the residents of sectors 81-99. “Many societies were given conditional occupation certificates (OCs), considering the non-availability of piped water in the area. Now the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has laid down the master pipelines in the new sectors.”

“We will soon be issuing notices to all the developers who have not yet applied for the GMDA’s water connection, If they face any hurdle in getting the connection, we will coordinate with the metropolitan authority. We are already coordinating with the GMDA to ascertain the water requirement in the housing societies and also making efforts to curb the illegal extraction of groundwater in the area,” he added.

The residents claim that many developers have adopted an indifferent attitude towards the issue while others are dilly-dallying the matter as they will have to shell out around Rs 3-4 lakh for getting the GMDA’s water connection. This, they say, is not only putting a financial burden on them as they depend on water tankers but also causing health concerns.

Notably, a few days back the residents of SS Coralwood fell sick after allegedly consuming contaminated water. Water is supplied from the borewell to the housing society.

Praveen Malik, vice-president of the United Association of New Gurugram and a resident of Sare Homes, said, “There is a nexus between some builders and the tanker mafia, which is why they are deliberately not taking water connection from the GMDA. Gurgaon is already in the dark zone and illegal groundwater extraction is further causing environmental hazards which the authorities need to look into strictly.”

Amit Shekhar, vice president of Vipul Lavanya RWA, said, “People are having skin and hair problems due to the use of hard water, even though we have to service our RO frequently as the water has a high total dissolved salt (TDS) level. It is ironic that even after the GMDA has started supplying water to the new sectors, we are unable to benefit from it.”