NMC doubles water tankers fleet in Nashik city amid rising complaints

Nashik: Summer has barely stepped through the door, yet Nashik is already feeling the heat — so much so that Nashik Municipal Corporation has been forced to double its tanker fleet, jumping from 13 to 25 vehicles across six divisions, amid complaints of erratic supply.Twelve additional tankers have been deployed in four divisions — Cidco, Panchavati, Nashik Road and Nashik East — after residents and corporators repeatedly flagged poor supply and extremely low tap pressure, which had further aggravated the shortage.Ravindra Dharankar, superintending engineer of NMC's water supply department, said the number of tankers was doubled to ensure timely supply. "We are sending tankers to areas reporting insufficient water," he said.The official said the department also reworked distribution patterns across all divisions. "We have revised the timing of water supply to improve overall management. Earlier, some areas received water twice a day. Now, to maintain balance, supply in these pockets has been restricted to once daily," Dharankar said.Staff and valve operators have been told to ensure proper distribution. Dharankar said the tanker fleet would be expanded further, with seven more vehicles set to be deployed next week, taking the total to 32.During the recent general body meeting, corporators from all parties expressed concern over irregular supply across the city. Mayor Himgauri Aher then directed officials to increase tanker availability and streamline supply immediately. Acting on these instructions, the water supply department enhanced the fleet.At present, NMC supplies 602 MLD (million litres daily) of water to Nashik. Officials maintained that while there was sufficient water in the dams, poor planning and uneven distribution have resulted in irregular supply in several areas.