Hoteliers mulling use of disposable materials as water crisis deepens
The hoteliers are praying for good rain around Yugadi (Kannada new year) time to overcome the crisis
PTI
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People wait in a queue to fill water from a RO kiosk at Chickpet in Bengaluru on Saturday. PHOTO: MOHAMMED ASAD
Bengaluru, 9 March
In the wake of the water scarcity,
hoteliers in Bengaluru are mulling the use of disposable cups, glasses and
plates to avoid excess use of water.
The hoteliers are praying for good
rain around Yugadi (Kannada new year) time to overcome the crisis. "Most
of our borewells have gone dry and we are dependent on water tankers. If there
is no rain around Yugadi, then we will have to make alternative
arrangements," Karnataka State Hoteliers Association president
Chandrashekar Hebbar told PTI on Saturday.
According to him, 90 per cent of
the water goes for washing utensils and which eventually goes down the drain. "Now
we are seriously exploring 'use and throw' material as an option," Hebbar
said. The hotelier said it will be a costly affair but the expenditure on the
disposable materials will be passed on to the customers. "We are feeling
the heat of the water scarcity in Bengaluru. We are praying for good rain
around Yugadi," the KSHA president said.
Meanwhile, the civic agency in
Bengaluru has appointed nodal officers for each ward in the City to address the
water woes after capping the water prices between Rs 600 and Rs 1,000 per
tanker. "In the midst of the outcry of 'no water', we are getting to know
that there is uninterrupted supply of beer. Water cannot fetch revenue but beer
can. The government is concentrating on revenue. We must admire the
government," the Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka
told reporters here.
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar
slammed the Opposition saying that it does not seem to know anything other than
criticism. "If they give any constructive suggestions, we are certainly
open to considering them. For the first time in the history of the State, we
have taken on the water mafia," he told reporters here.
Shivakumar appealed to the people
to use water judiciously and understand the value of water. Asked why the
government is not able to get water while private water tankers are managing large
supplies, he said, "Private water tankers supply water from private
borewells while government supplies from drinking water units.
The Deputy CM said water scarcity
was the reason behind the state government pushing for the Mekedatu balancing
reservoir project across the Cauvery river in Kanakapura in Ramanagara district.
The Karnataka government wants the Mekedatu project to utilise its share of
Cauvery water. However, the neighbouring Tamil Nadu government, which often
locks horns with Karnataka over Cauvery water sharing, has opposed the Mekedatu
project.
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