Conserve Water, Gated Communities In Hyderabad Tell Residents

HYDERABAD: Hyderabad’s gated communities are beginning to cut back on the amenities that form part of residential life within their walls. Swimming pools are being closed, lawns are receiving less water and residents are being asked to change everyday habits as societies contend with declining groundwater and uncertain municipal supply.

The swimming pool at My Home Vihanga has been closed to conserve water and two of the gated community's four borewells have dried up. The 2,000-flat complex in the Financial District requires around eight lakh litres of fresh water daily, even as its management restricts gardening and asks residents to use buckets instead of showers.

“If one day water supply is not provided to Vihanga by HMWSSB, we end up paying around Rs 1.5 lakh. Imagine if we don’t get water for 10 days. That applies to the maintenance,” said Praveen Rao, vice-president of My Home Vihanga. “I think December and January should be fine, but in summer, the levels might not remain the same. We don’t know how long this will suffice.”

The society receives around 600 to 700 kilolitres (KL) daily from the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB), according to Rao, while its functioning borewells meet the remaining requirement. Treated wastewater from its sewage treatment plant is used for toilet flushing.

Water consumption within the complexes is another concern; a My Home gated community in HiTech city reported that its 550 flats were consuming over 500 KL daily against an estimated requirement of 350 KL, including common areas. The association subsequently announced compulsory water conservation briefings for domestic workers and warned that those who did not attend would be denied entry. Its advisory also identified ageing pipelines, overflowing tanks and underused treated wastewater as areas requiring attention.

“The message of water conservation has still not reached people properly. Even today, I see people in apartment complexes washing vehicles and other areas using hosepipes. Residents have been asked to use buckets instead of running water, but the practice continues,” said Dr Lubna Sarwath, an environmental activist.

My Home Vihanga’s management committee acknowledged a similar difficulty in its October 24 notice, stating that repeated reminders had not produced a meaningful reduction in consumption. Rao said the association was circulating weekly advisories, encouraging the use of tap aerators to reduce water flow and asking households to change their bathing habits. The society has also reduced watering of lawns and plants to alternate days.

Most of the gated communities are circulating similar reminders and notices, in Narsingi, Accurate Wind Chimes has been asking households to avoid washing vehicles and common areas with running hosepipes, conserve water during cleaning and repair leaks. Closeby, in Golf View, a residential community of approximately 396 flats, has so far managed without major restrictions. Its residents have benefited from a newly drilled borewell, while two unsuccessful or dried-up borewells have been converted into rainwater harvesting structures.

“We went for two fresh borewells. In one, we got abundant water at around 300 feet itself. The other borewell did not yield much water, so we converted it into a rainwater harvesting pit. We also converted the old borewell that had dried up into another pit,” said Dr A. Narasimha, a resident of Golf View.

Rainwater from the residential blocks is channelled through pipelines into the two pits in the basement. Narasimha said the society continues to receive municipal water and uses treated wastewater for gardening. Its swimming pool has not been closed because of water scarcity, although it is normally shut during winter.

Although Golf View and My Home Vihanga use treated water within their premises, Sarwath questioned whether authorities were adequately monitoring sewage treatment plants (STPs) across residential complexes. “Recycling wastewater and using it for horticulture and landscaping is not a new concept. These measures were already required under building regulations, but the authorities did not properly monitor their implementation. The question is who monitored whether the water was actually being reused,” she said.