The Chandrapur district administration has ordered an immediate crackdown on unauthorised water extraction from reservoirs, rivers, lakes, dams, Kolhapuri weirs and canals after a reported 30.43% rainfall deficit raised concerns about drinking-water availability in the coming dry months.
Collector Vasumana Pant, who also heads the District Disaster Management Authority, has directed the formation of revenue circle-level flying squads to inspect water sources and prevent indiscriminate withdrawal. The administration said the enforcement drive would prioritise protecting available stocks for essential needs, especially drinking water.
The squads will carry out routine as well as surprise inspections across the district. Complaints from residents about illegal water extraction will be verified at the reported locations, according to the administration’s directions. Pumps, motors, pipelines and other equipment used for unauthorised withdrawal will be inspected and seized when violations are detected.
Each flying squad will be coordinated by a section engineer from one of three agencies: the Water Resources Department, the Water Conservation Department or the Zilla Parishad. A section engineer from the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd, a revenue circle officer and a police sub-inspector will also be part of the team.
The composition places water-resource monitoring, revenue administration, electricity supply and policing within a single field operation. This allows the administration to examine both the physical withdrawal of water and the equipment and power connections used to facilitate it, while providing police support during enforcement action.
The district administration has instructed the departments concerned to deploy the teams immediately and begin field operations without delay. The squads must submit reports to the Collector’s office every Monday, recording the locations inspected, instances of unauthorised extraction detected and the action taken.
The order comes as Chandrapur prepares for a period of heightened pressure on available water stocks. The administration has identified the reported rainfall deficit as a concern for drinking-water availability and directed enforcement teams to prevent withdrawals that could compromise supplies for residents and other essential needs.
The measures also create a complaint-based channel for residents to alert officials about suspected illegal extraction. Those complaints are to be verified by the field teams rather than acted upon without inspection. The administration’s immediate next step is the deployment of revenue circle-level squads and the submission of their first enforcement reports to the Collector’s office through the prescribed Monday reporting cycle.
