COIMBATORE: Water scarcity has now hit various industries, especially construction industry, with projects being slowed down. The price of water meant for commercial and domestic purposes also has gone up in recent days.
Construction industry players said they were forced to extend the deadline of many projects in the absence of sufficient water to carry out work. While no project has been stalled so far, they said the same might happen by the end of April, if the dry conditions were to continue.
S G Swaminathan, former president, Coimbatore Builders and Contractors Association, said mega projects might get delayed by three to four months, if the water woes persisted. “Now, the impact is very little. If the water shortage continues for another month, mega projects will be badly hit. Not only they will be delayed, but also there will be an escalation in the project costs. This will be a huge burden on the players.”
He, however, said the small projects wouldn’t feel much of the heat even if rain is delayed. “While the groundwater level and water supply will dip, small projects could survive as the water requirement is less.” He said the impact of water scarcity could be evaluated only by the end of April.
Similarly, car wash service providers are also affected by the water shortage. While they have increased the cost of services, their business has come down. Unlike in previous years, water supply had considerably decreased this summer, said manager of a car wash unit at Saravanampatti. “Usually, we clock more business during summer, when vehicles will be covered with dust and owners will seek frequent washing services.”
He said they were now charging Rs200 for washing a bike, against ₹100-₹150 earlier. “Charges for washing small cars have been increased to ₹450-₹500 from ₹400. For bigger cars, we are charging anywhere between ₹600 and ₹700.”
Plantation nurseries too are in a difficult situation. A nursery owner from Kuniyamuthur said they were forced to depend on water tankers for irrigation purposes. “Hence, we have increased the prices of saplings. We are considering sustainable methods like drip irrigation to limit the water usage.”
Another nursery owner said the scorching heat has affected the growth of plants as well. “Borewells too have gone dry. We are buying 6,000 litres of water daily. With the customer base also dwindling, we are staring at a loss in business.”
