Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad residents raise concerns over polluted rivers

The pernicious state of the rivers in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad is raising concerns towards the health of the citizens. Recently the drinking water of the Blue Ridge Society in Hinjewadi was infested with Chironomidae larvae also known as ‘nonbiting midges’ or ‘bloodworms’ in drinking water, while the residents of Kharadi were struggling with a swarm of mosquitoes near the riverbed. While the civic authorities are spending crores of rupees in the beautification of riverbeds under the ‘River Front Development’ project, civic activists allege that the civic body is least concerned about the bad health of the rivers.

The residents of Blue Ridge Society in Hinjewadi woke up to a horrific situation on February 14 when they witnessed red larva-like organisms floating in their drinking water.

Hinjewadi Blue Ridge Society resident Vijay Patil said, “You will find it uncomfortable to see worm-like specimens in the water and food you eat when it begins to stream out with the tap water. The township was built in 2010 and has 3,000 apartments spread over five societies. Out of the 800 units in Blue Ridge, 20% were impacted and discovered bloodworms in the tap water since February 12; this has never happened before; however, the water had previously turned yellow. The township is located within the Hinjewadi gram panchayat limits. The township is allowed to pump water from the nearby Mula River under the Maharashtra Township Act. We have a filtration plant and an STP, however, the plant has had issues for more than ten years. We rely on the quality of the river water, and the hyacinth is making the already dire state of the river's health worse. The problem of the blood worms is solved but the river pollution persists. We have registered a complaint on the Aple Sarkar mobile application but did not receive any response."

Shraddha Sawant another resident of Blue Ridge Society said, “We have spent crores of rupees to purchase a flat in this premium scheme in Hinjewadi. Now we are facing major issues one of which is getting clean drinking water. We request the civic authorities to consider the condition of the river and act on war footing to provide us with clean water to drink.”

Additional Commissioner Pradeep Jambhale Patil of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation said, “The PCMC is taking all possible measures to control the water hyacinths and the problems caused due to it. We have cleaned the hyacinths in Sangvi and neighbouring areas. The Hinjewadi area comes under the Gram Panchayat jurisdiction. We have received many complaints from the residents who reside near the river bed and we are solving them.”

The locals of the twin town claim that despite many complaints to the municipal officials, the delay in getting rid of the hyacinths has continued for more than three years. Now, the matter hangs like a tightrope between the inhabitants and the civic authorities.

Deepak Patil of the Kharadi Residents Association said, “Water hyacinth currently covers the whole Mula-Mutha River section in the Kharadi region. We saw a swarm of mosquitoes approaching our housing communities every evening. The citizens' plea has to be given immediate consideration by the PMC.”

Kunal Khemnar Additional Commissioner of the Pune Municipal Corporation while talking to LokmatTimes.com said, “The PMC is on its toes to eradicate the water hyacinths from the river. We have received numerous complaints about the problems the residents on the river bed have to face due to the water hyacinths including the mosquitoes breeding and other issues. Major hyacinths from the river in Kharadi have been removed. We are waiting for the MPCB approval to use chemicals to remove hyacinths, however till then we will use mechanical and manual labour in this process.”

Ecologist Virendra Chitrav Coordinator of Kirloskar Vasundhara Ram Nadi Restoration Mission said, “The major cause of forming of hyacinths is due to water pollution caused due to direct dumping of drainage water in the rivers, people do not hesitate to throw garbage and nirmalya in the river. A small amount of hyacinths is good for the river but when the river is covered with a green blanket it means it is an indication that the river water is not receiving enough oxygen and the river is on the verge of dying. The citizens and the civic authorities should come together to conserve our water bodies and we have done that in a small portion of the Ramnadi project. We have made the water drinkable with the help of ideas from college students. Many start-ups want to proactively come forward and join in river conservation. If we do not act today it will be too late as our rivers are dying.”