Vakil Garden City, an upscale gated community of 150 villas on Kanakapura Road in south Bengaluru, had four borewells to service its water needs. However, the recent rain deficiency led to three of them drying up. “We dug four more borewells 10 days ago at a cost of over ₹10 lakh. Of them, only one has yielded water. In between, we were dependent on water tanker suppliers who were fleecing us. As the rains failed, the price of a tanker went up with each passing day,” said R. Shivakumar, president of the RWA.
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Residents across the outskirts of Bengaluru, from Whitefield to Kanakapura Road to north Bengaluru, have similar stories to tell. Bengaluru Urban district recorded a 92% rain deficiency in August and a 42% shortfall in the June-August monsoon period. The result is that the drinking water crisis on the city’s outskirts — areas that are not serviced by Cauvery water supply and are dependent on borewells — has worsened.
“Our apartment complex has 12 borewells, of which 10 have dried up. Now, we are rationing water. We are not alone. Nearly 80% of the borewells in apartments and gated communities in our region have dried up, forcing us to depend on water tankers. However, even tanker water is not available even if you are willing to pay whatever the suppliers demand,” said Sampath Ramanujam, member, Seegehalli Gram Panchayat, off Whitefield.
| Water tanker | Price range in June 2023 | Price range as on August 31, 2023 |
| 6,000 litres | ₹700 - ₹850 | ₹800 - ₹1,000 |
| 12,000 litres | ₹1,000 - ₹1,200 | ₹1,200 - ₹1,800 |
Many people tried digging new borewells, but have found little success.
However, Mr. Ramanujam informed us, that groundwater levels in Mahadevapura were good in a three to five-kilometre radius around lakes that have been rejuvenated recently.
Ramachandraiah B. G., Director, Karnataka Ground Water Directorate, said that while the groundwater levels had improved in Bengaluru on average due to a combination of good rains, lake rejuvenation, and filling up of tanks in neighbouring districts over the last four years, over-exploitation combined with the rain deficiency this monsoon had resulted in drying up of shallow borewells. The directorate will take up a study of groundwater levels in Bengaluru in the coming weeks.
Even tanker water is hard to come by
James C.S., a resident of north Bengaluru, said, “We have borewells, but they have dried up this year. Finding tanker water now has become a Herculean task. Most of the suppliers turn us down saying they do not service new clients. They claim to be short of water. The few who are ready to supply tanker water are demanding exorbitant rates.”
This has forced many apartment communities to sign up for long-term contracts of up to five years with tanker water businesses.
Suresh S., resident of an upscale apartment complex off Kanakapura Road, said, “We were relying on our own borewells to cater to the demand in our community. But our borewells have dried up this year. At the same time, we are finding it tough to get tanker water. Every water tanker businessman is demanding a long-term commitment in return for catering to our immediate need now. Hence, we entered into a five-year contract with a water tanker businessman.”
| Months | Normal Rain | Rain recorded in Bengaluru Urban | Deficit |
| August 2023 | 163 mm | 13 mm | 92.03% |
| June - August 2023 | 389.4 mm | 226.2 mm | 41.92% |
Water tanker suppliers are caught in a difficult situation. While demand has shot up manyfold, they are not able to cater to the demand. Most of the borewells from which they extract water have also dried up. Attempts to dig more borewells have met with not only failure to find water, but also resistance from villagers, like in Ramagondanahalli, off Whitefield on August 30. Villagers protested against illegal borewells and over-exploitation of groundwater table in their village, which they blame for a severe water crisis in Ramagondanahalli.
Ramesh Reddy, who has been in the water tanker business in Doddanekundi for over two decades, said the borewells he had dug up have dried up this season. He is now dependent on a borewell in Domlur, whose yield is decreasing. “Where once we used to extract 50 loads of water per borewell, now it’s tough to extract even 7 loads per day,” he said. “Most water tanker businesses, including mine, are only servicing our regular customers, who buy water from us even during the monsoon. We are unable to cater to demand from apartment communities that earlier depended on their own borewells,” he said.
Caught between the devil and the deep sea, several apartment complexes in Bengaluru, and Bangalore Apartments’ Federation have initiated a campaign to persuade residents to save water.
Steps to save water
- Avoid washing cars with a hose pipe. Instead, use a wet cloth
- Ration water for garden, landscape
- Use RO purifier reject water to wash vessels and water plants
- Avoid using bathtubs and shower baths
- Close water inlet valve partially to reduce water usage
