Water tanker prices go up drastically as Bengaluru stares at a water crisis this summer

Bengaluru: Even before the summer officially sets in, water tanker prices have skyrocketed in the city, leaving residents grappling for water. The situation clearly shows that the city might be staring at a huge water crisis this summer. 

Numerous apartment complexes and surrounding areas awaiting Cauvery water supply heavily depend on water tankers for their needs. The price for water from a 12,000-litre tanker has risen from approximately Rs 1,200 a month ago to at least Rs 1,800 now, with some areas seeing prices as high as Rs 2,000. Dealers of water tankers predict that the cost of water could increase to Rs 2,500 during the peak summer season.

Water tanker suppliers said that dry borewells had made it difficult for them to get water to supply and as a result, the prices were shooting up. 

“Now, we have to travel nearly 40 km to get the tanker filled since the majority of the borewells within the city are dry. This increases the expenses on fuel as well. Hence, the prices have increased drastically,” said Ramesh Reddy S, owner of Sri Rama Water Supply Works which operates in Doddanekundi. 

The suppliers also pointed out that the number of orders they can take in a day has reduced since they now have to spend more time refilling the tankers. 

“Earlier, we could complete at least 12 trips. Now, since there is a huge rush to get water refilled owing to the limited number of operational borewells, we can hardly complete three or four trips a day,” said Praveen, from Lakshmi Water Supply, which operates in Varthur and
Bommanahalli. 

Owing to such problems, many residents complain that the tankers take over three days to reach even if they are ready to shell out money. 

“The prices have increased drastically but we also do not have an alternative since the borewells in our area have gone dry. However, even if we agree to pay the hefty amount, getting a tanker on time is difficult owing to the demand,” said Sandhya K P, a resident of Kalkere. 

Many tanker suppliers said they had now stopped taking new orders and had decided to supply only to regular customers. “We do not have the bandwidth to take any new orders. We only want to retain old customers,” Reddy said. 

Mahadevapura, Marathahalli, Doddanekundi, Horamavu, Varthur, Bommanahalli and RR Nagar are among the areas facing the acute shortage. 

Rajesh, a resident of Sharada Layout, RR Nagar, said: “We never experienced this level of water scarcity. Apartment complexes in our area are digging borewells recklessly, causing the groundwater table to fall. Many in our locality now depend on water tankers that charge Rs 1,600 to Rs 1,800 for 6,000 litres.” 

A resident of BHEL 2nd Stage,
RR Nagar, said the availability of water at public water points had also decreased. “To get a 20-litre can of water, we need to wait for more than an hour. If this is the condition at the beginning of February, what will happen in March and April?” the resident said.

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Resident RR Nagar

“To get a 20-litre can of water we need to wait for more than an hour. If this is the condition at the beginning of February what will happen in March and April?