Nagpur, June 19, 2025: In the past 24 hours, the water supply in several areas of the city has been severely affected due to damages caused at seven different locations by other contractors involved in development works. On June 16, 17, 18, and 19 during ongoing construction activities at Pratapanagar Chowk, Bijli Nagar (Civil Lines), Hasanbagh Gate, Sharda Mata Chowk, Vaishnodevi Chowk, Pratap Nagar, and Ravi Nagar Square various contractors damaged crucial water pipelines. As a result, thousands of households across the city are facing water shortages.
These incidents have significantly disrupted the regular water supply service, leading to a sharp increase in customer complaints. The demand for water tankers has surged and has now exceeded OCW’s supply capacity. OCW has promptly informed the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) about these incidents to take necessary actions.
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Water pipeline damage has been occurring for several months, but the frequency has increased manifold in recent times. In June alone, a total of 17 instances of damage have been caused by third-party contractors, causing severe inconvenience to the citizens of Nagpur. Multiple incidents have occurred in just the last five days, as detailed below.
Details of the incidents:
June 16, 2025 – 8:00 PM, Pratapanagar Chowk: A 150 mm distribution pipeline was damaged by M/s BCC Transco during cable laying. Around 900 residents of Telecom Nagar, Ramkrishna Nagar, Gawande Layout, Trisharan Nagar, Shastri Layout, Trust Colony, Central Excise Colony, and Pioneer Society are without water. Repairs are pending for over 48 hours.
June 17, 2025 – 2:00 PM, near Bijli Nagar, Civil Lines: A 700 mm feeder main was damaged by M/s Shri Combines (Optical Fibre laying). Around 22,000 consumers in Reshimbagh CA, Hanuman Nagar CA, and Old & New Wanjari Nagar under Dhantoli zone are affected. The contractor refused to repair the damage, so OCW deployed its own team.
June 17, 2025 – 4:00 PM, near Hasanbagh Gate: A 200 mm distribution line was damaged by T&T Infra Pvt. Ltd. (NHAI works). Around 4,000 residents in Hasanbagh, Nandanvan slum, KDK College area, Venkatesh Nagar, Kavelu Quarters, and LIG-MIG Quarters are affected. Repairs by the contractor are still pending.
June 17, 2025 – 7:00 PM, Sharda Mata Chowk, Gittikhadan: A 150 mm pipeline was damaged by M/s S.S. Communication (Reliance Jio). Around 500 residents in Mahesh Nagar, Mama Chowk, Ahbab Colony, and Borgao under Gittikhadan CA are without water. Contractor has not yet initiated repairs.
June 17, 2025 – 8:00 PM, Vaishnodevi Chowk (in front of MIG Colony): A 400 mm inlet feeder supplying water to Bharatwadi ESR was damaged by a contractor laying MSEB cables. Around 3,500 residents in the Bharatwadi (Deshpande Layout) ESR CA are affected. As the contractor refused to act, OCW’s repair team was deployed.
June 18, 2025 – 8:00 PM, Pratap Nagar Square: M/s BCC Transco once again damaged the Pratap Nagar (AMRUT) distribution feeder main during HDD operations. About 2,500 residents under Pratap Nagar (AMRUT) ESR CA have been impacted. The contractor failed to repair the damage overnight; work commenced the next morning and is currently ongoing.
June 19, 2025 – 9:00 AM, Ravi Nagar Square: A 110 mm feeder pipeline was damaged by MSEB contractor M/s Nakshatra Joshi. Around 800 residents are facing water outage. The contractor has agreed to repair the leak and work is in progress.
Electricity outages and low water availability are already major challenges in ensuring uninterrupted supply. Now, frequent and uncoordinated external digging, especially using technologies like Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), is further worsening water scarcity in several areas.
To prevent such incidents in the future and minimize inconvenience to citizens, OCW urges all external agencies to mandatory verify the location of underground utilities/water pipelines in coordination with OCW before commencing any excavation, particularly when using HDD or mechanical trenching methods. OCW has also recommended to the NMC that a formal Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) be enforced for pre-excavation checks, alignment approval, and on-site supervision during the execution of such works.
OCW and NMC appeal to all citizens to cooperate and use water judiciously during this difficult time. Restoration efforts are ongoing on a war footing to resume normal water supply as soon as possible.
For more information about water supply, consumers can contact NMC-OCW Helpline No 1800 266 9899 or email at contact@ocwindia.com.
