The good news. My neighbourhood waterfall that does not exist throughout the year came alive a few days back, and looks lovely now.
The great news. It's raining. It's lashing the city. There's water everywhere. Over the last few weeks, we've seen deluge twice.
The funny, ironical, yet real news: No water at home. Mumbai's keepers have shut one of the four water-supply pipelines that quench the city's thirst. So while it rains in plenty, my taps have run dry since 10 am.
Outside my window, I can still hear the roar of fresh water gushing down from a pipe into the storm-water drain below. Fresh clean water from the monsoon green hills.
The tragedy: This water goes waste. It goes into the drains, probably to join sewage downstream. It is not treated for domestic use. It is not stored for future use. It is looked at like one would look at drain water.
This morning, I was shocked to find my tap going dry an hour in advance. After the clamour to store every drop of water I could manage, I chanced by those headlines that glared about misuse of Mumbai's water by builders. And these builders get away while the municipal corporation says `it is difficult' to rein them in!
Ever since I set foot in Mumbai, I have not once heard the words Rain Water Harvesting. Harvesting water is more a rage in other cities. No one thought yet that Mumbai's mountainous water needs need to be addressed locally too - by the housing societies, by the builders, developers, by the municipal corporation.
I rave and rant. I crib. The water below my apartment window continues to go waste.
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