Bengaluru: Pool water going down the drain, say citizens

With water scarcity having hit the city this summer, residents worry about enormous amounts being wasted in swimming pools
Bengaluru: Pool water going down the drain, say citizens

BENGALURU: With the current water scarcity in Bengaluru, some citizens have complained about water
being wasted in the maintenance of swimming pools. According to citizens, medium and large gated communities use a lot of water to fill up their pools, which are not even used by all the residents inside the community.

Besides maintaining the pool, residents also worry about the water wasted during pre/post swimming showers. “A lot of water is spilt. A few pools even have seepage, leading to a worse situation. In my building, about 5,000 to 6,000 litres of water is used every day. The number will be larger for all of Bengaluru,” said Sunil Sood, an energy consultant. He added that areas that do not receive Cauvery water supply use borewells to fill the pools.

A resident from Gottigere explained that even after installing rainwater harvesting systems and aerators, a lot of the saved water is wasted on the swimming pool. “People use the swimming pool during summers only. But they are not being used as much during the other seasons. Also, money is invested in the maintenance of these pools,” said the resident at Nydhile Residency, Gottigere. According to the resident, about Rs 2.4 lakh was spent on maintaining the pool in February this year.

Mahesh Gune, a member of Sai Nandana Gardenia Apartment Owners Association, Gottigere, explained that since swimming pools are not used much in winters, the association looked for other amenities, such as a basketball court, but everyone eventually chose the swimming pool option as it got the maximum number of votes.

The president of the association, Suresh Babu, said: “People have paid for these amenities but we have opted for other methods like RWH and fixing aerators to the pipes to conserve water.”

Kemp Ramaiah, engineer in chief at Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), said people using Cauvery water are billed according to their usage. “Areas that have Cauvery connection do not face any water issue and we bill them accordingly,” he added.

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