BENGALURU: Water crisis in Bengaluru is making people change their routines, including opting for work-from-home to move to their native places to work from, regulating bath routines, restricting washing machine use, moving out on weekends to avail water to wash their clothes, and even considering moving out of the city temporarily, till the water problem improves.
Netizens are even appealing to those in other parts of the country or abroad, not to consider coming to Bengaluru due to the perceived water crisis. A majority of those affected, are living in the 110 villages incorporated in BBMP jurisdiction, especially in south east and east Bengaluru.
Devika P, a techie from Mahadevapura said that some of her colleagues have shifted to hotels, but her husband and she have decided to shift to Chennai till the water situation improves in Bengaluru. “My husband and I leave for office early in the morning and return late. There is no water during that time. We also have no time to fill the buckets, and no method to store when the tankers come. Hence, opting for work-from-home, and temporarily moving to Chennai seems like a wise decision,” she said.
A Yelahanka-residing professor of Indian Institute of Science (IISc), on condition of anonymity, said: “There have been water problems in Yelahanka for the last 8-10 days. Since I was unable to get accommodation on a temporary basis in the institute quarters, my wife and I shifted to my in-laws house in Sanjay Nagar till the situation improves.”
Dharmendra Kumar, through a video posted on social media, has asked people to postpone their visit to Bengaluru till the situation improves. His video has caught the attention of netizens globally. Kumar said people should avoid coming during summer and find accommodation where water is not scarce. He said since natural connectivity of lakes has been destroyed, the problem has worsened.
It is not just in the 110 villages around Bengaluru. The problem is experienced even in older areas of the city. TJ Arjunraj, a techie who lives in Sampangiram Nagar, said: “Last weekend, I was unable to take a bath as there was absolutely no water. My other PG mates work in star hotels. They have baths at their workplaces. I can’t do that. When we asked our PG owner, he said there is a crisis, and we have to adjust. I am now making arrangements to stay with my parents for some days as the pressure of daily water struggle and professional pressure is too much to handle.”
TNIE even came across cases of Bengalureans with native places close by, preferring to take their clothes there for a weekly wash rather than struggle for water here in the city.
To address the water problem, several apartment associations have laid down stringent rules restricting water usage. Many have put up notices on their boards asking residents to restrict use of washing machines as a once-a-week exercise, avoid washing cars till the problem is resolved, per day restriction on water supplied from building pumps to fixed hours from, encouraging water storage, and even levying penalties if found wasting water.
