The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has announced a scheduled water supply suspension across four major administrative wards on Friday and Saturday to undertake critical maintenance on the city’s primary water pipelines. The civic body said the temporary shutdown, affecting parts of Ghatkopar, Kurla, Chembur, Matunga, and Sion, is necessary to replace ageing valves and ensure long-term efficiency of Mumbai’s water distribution system.
According to officials, the maintenance involves replacing five major valves that regulate water flow across eastern and central parts of the city. The shutdown will take place in two phases — from 10:00 a.m. on Friday to 8:00 a.m. on Saturday in Kurla (L Ward) and Chembur (M West Ward), and between 3:45 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. on Saturday in Ghatkopar (N Ward) and Matunga-Sion (F North Ward). Areas such as Tilak Nagar, Nehru Nagar, Chunabhatti, Sion, Dadar East, Vidyavihar, Wadala, and Bhakti Park are among the key neighbourhoods expected to experience the outage. The civic authority has urged residents to store sufficient water in advance and avoid wastage during the maintenance period. Tanker services are being prepared as a contingency measure for essential institutions such as hospitals and emergency facilities.
Civic engineers explained that the valve replacement is part of a larger modernisation programme aimed at reducing leakages, preventing contamination, and improving water pressure stability across Mumbai’s 4,500-kilometre network. “This intervention will strengthen operational reliability and support future automation of the city’s water supply,” an official from the hydraulic department said. Experts note that such preventive maintenance, though inconvenient in the short term, is critical to improving sustainability in Mumbai’s ageing infrastructure. “Many of the city’s underground pipelines date back several decades. Planned shutdowns for structural upgrades are a sign of better asset management and long-term resilience,” said an infrastructure expert.
The BMC has also been expanding its smart water management system, which includes pressure monitoring, remote sensors, and digital control rooms for real-time fault detection. These upgrades align with Mumbai’s broader goal of transitioning towards resource-efficient and climate-resilient urban infrastructure. While citizens have raised concerns about frequent maintenance-related disruptions, civic planners argue that the works are necessary to secure uninterrupted and equitable water access for all communities. As the city continues to grow vertically and demographically, sustainable and efficient water management remains central to ensuring Mumbai’s livability and climate resilience.
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