BMC supplied 5 million litres of water via tankers to Andheri East while the Veravali pipeline was being repaired. File pic

The contractor for the Metro Line 6 breached the Veravali main pipeline at SEEPZ, Andheri East on November 30. This stopped the water supply in most of Andheri East for four days. According to the BMC, the contractor was served a notice on December 5. “We have given the Metro Line 6 contractor seven days to pay the fine,” said hydraulic engineer Purushotam Malvade.

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‘No new connection’

A BMC official who did not wish to be identified told mid-day that a provision in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, 1888, prohibits water supply to newly completed projects if their contractors don’t pay dues. “If the contractor does not pay his dues, we cannot allow a new water connection to the completed Metro 6 project,” the official said.

The BMC supplied around five million litres of water to Andheri East via tankers while the Veravali pipeline was being repaired over five days. Private tankers supplied nearly 10 million litres of water during that time.

Illegal borewell

Meanwhile, in the incident at Thane, the private builder punctured the water tunnel on November 8, 2022, while digging a borewell at the proposed IT park at plot number C-30, road number 16, in Wagle Industrial Area. The water tunnel was located 100 m below the ground level. Furthermore, the punctured tunnel led to the loss of 650 million litres of water between November 8, 2022, and April 22, 2023.

On March 31, mid-day was the first to report that the borewell dug by the developer was illegal. The damage to the water pipeline led to over 10 days of water cuts in April. The civic body issued the Rs 75 crore fine against the builder in June.

The BMC has still not received the fine amount from the builder. Malvade said, “We have started the administrative procedure to initiate legal action. More developments in the matter shall follow soon.”

1.3cr
Fine (in rupees) levied on Metro Line 6 contractor