Many Bengaluru apartments continue water conservation measures post the crisis period Premium

The summer that went by saw Bengaluru -- a city known for its great weather and lush gardens -- face one of its most challenging water crises in recent memory. With reduced rains last year and groundwater levels plummeting, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) stepped up to implement stringent water conservation measures. Many apartment complexes across the city embraced water conservation methods.

The summer that went by saw Bengaluru -- a city known for its great weather and lush gardens -- face one of its most challenging water crises in recent memory. With reduced rains last year and groundwater levels plummeting, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) stepped up to implement stringent water conservation measures. Many apartment complexes across the city embraced water conservation methods.

In March this year, the BWSSB prohibited the use of drinking water for car washing, construction, gardening, fountains, road repairs, and maintenance tasks. The civic body also banned the use of potable water, both from the Cauvery and from borewells, to fill swimming pools. A month later the BWSSB relaxed the ban allowing apartment complexes, clubs, and sporting institutes to use borewell and rainwater to fill swimming pools. However, the order said that no one can use the Cauvery water supplied by the board to fill the pools. The BWSSB said that if any of these conditions are not met, it will impose a fine of ₹5,000 for the first offence, and on subsequent offences, the fine would go up by ₹500 every day. 

Now that the rains are here, are these communities continuing to comply with BWSSB’s directives for sustainable living by continuing to follow the water conservation methods? It appears that many of them are.

Vikram Rai, president of Bengaluru Apartments’ Federation (BAF) said, “Post the instruction by the BWSSB there has not been any relaxation on the ban. The BAF does get queries from our members asking if the ban is lifted but we instruct them that the prohibitions continue. There are about 1,300 apartments that fall under the BAF, and every apartment is continuing to follow the conservation methods.”  

As it is the rainy season now, BAF tells its members how harvested rainwater can be a great source and replacement for Cauvery or borewell water. Most apartments are reusing treated water, harvested rainwater and groundwater for their activities. “We also have a talk with the members frequently and discuss how some of the techniques we adopted during summer can be sustained. Apartments have also created policies or mechanisms to make sure water is conserved. For example, some apartments have strict rules that allow residents to wipe their cars every day but can only use a bucket of water to wash their cars once a week. Apartments had covered swimming pools with tarpaulin to stop water evaporating from the pool when not in use during the summer, many apartments are continuing to do it.” explained Rai.

Rohini Ghose, secretary of the apartment association of Aristocrat Apartments, Kasturinagar, said that they had come up with a unique way to collect around 600 litres of RO wastewater every day and are continuing to follow the method. “Though it has been raining and there is sufficient water, we are continuing with the conservation measures we started in March. Initially, we did not know how to conserve RO water as ours is an old apartment, and it would be hard for us to lay down new pipelines. So, in the summer we decided to do a survey in the apartment and found that out of 145 RO units, we can get around 10 litres of RO wastewater every day from at least 70 units. We gave all the residents a 10-litre jerry can to fill and keep outside their houses. This water is then poured into two 200-litre drums that come with taps and a hose. We use the water for car washing, mopping common areas, swimming pools and for the garden area.”

Recently they also got a lab test of the RO water, RO rejects water, ground-water and Cauvery water, to confirm that their water quality was good. It had the right pH levels and met the WHO threshold. “This allowed us to take a decision that we could use the RO reject water for our swimming pool, and now we have seen a drop in our water bill,” Ghose added.