With the rise in demand for water going up manifold, the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials today reiterated that there is no shortage of water and the residents of the township are free to use water as per their requirements. The heat factor is too high.

It means people are using more water to drink, bathe and water the plants. We have never seen such heart wavelike conditions before, said the BMC mayor Krishna Chakraborty. “We love nature. We can never deprive nature. We are alive because of the oxygen we get from them and the greenery which helps us in our well being. When we enter the Salt Lake area we feel the difference in the air quality. That is because of the greenery around us. Let me assure, we have sufficient water and are supplying water as per the requirements,” said mayor Chakraborty.

Referring to a news report, which talked about the BMC issuing instructions about limited use of water for the plants, the mayor said she had been flooded with calls on the issue.

She clarified, “We have not issued any such directive or held any meeting in this regard for not watering plants. All our civic facilities are as before. We are professing watering of plants and keeping aside water for the birds and the domestic animals. It is the need of the hour. We have worked hard to get filtered drinking water and we have sufficient water storage facilities as well.”

On the worsening condition of roads in the corporation area, the mayor said that there are some technical difficulties at BMC’s end which is taking time to completely rectify them. “It takes time to call for tenders and then the whole process takes 3-4 months time. We do patch repair work where it is absolutely necessary, she said.” On water meter installation at residential areas, the mayor said, “We are putting meters only when someone is taking new connections. It is for our own estimation. If there are five people then how much water is consumed by the family. This will help us plan better for the future. We will not take money. Our chief minister Mamata Banerjee has said that there can be no taxation on water consumption,” she said. .