Water supply partially restored in Delhi

WATER supply has been partially restored in the Indian capital, Delhi, where up to 10 million were affected after protesters sabotaged a key canal.

The army took control of the Munak canal in neighbouring Haryana state on Monday after Jat community members, angry at caste job quotas, damaged it.

Delhi Water Minister, Kapil Mishra, said the “crisis was still not over” and urged people to use water carefully.

The city’s schools, which were closed because of the crisis, have reopened.

Sixteen million people live in Delhi, and around three-fifths of the city’s water is supplied by the Munak canal, which runs through Haryana.

Mr. Mishra tweeted on yesterday morning that “some water has been released” from the canal. This had led to the restoration of partial supplies in north and central Delhi, he said.

He said more than 70 water tankers from these areas had been moved to the western part of the city, where partial supplies would be “hopefully” restored by yesterday evening.

“The supply will be limited till the time the Munak (canal) is totally repaired. The crisis is not yet over. People should use water carefully,” he said.

The cutting of the canal will not directly affect those in the capital who live in homes without piped, running water – a large number of Delhi’s residents live in slums and other housing and rely on water tankers and other sources such as bore-wells.

But the reduction in supply is having an affect across the city.

Senior water board official, Neeraj Semwal, told the AFP that four of Delhi’s nine water treatment plants were operating, forcing rationing of supplies to many areas.

“We are hoping to restore partial services in the next two to three days and 100 per cent supply within the next 15 days,” Mr Semwal said.

It is not clear how many households are still without water.

Prior warnings meant that people had managed to save water, and tankers had been dispatched to affected areas of the city, but that this has not been enough to make up for the shortfall.