Pune will face a citywide water supply shutdown every Thursday from October 15 after the Pune Municipal Corporation cited lower-than-usual storage in the dams supplying the city and concerns about the possible impact of El Niño on rainfall. The civic body has also asked residents, housing societies, commercial establishments and institutions to cut water consumption by at least 10 percent.
PMC Additional Commissioner Pavneet Kaur informed residents about the decision. In a press note, the civic body said the Khadakwasla dam chain had a remaining water stock of 26.22 TMC as of October 12, 2026, and that the available storage was below the level recorded in a typical year.
Officials reviewed water availability in the Khadakwasla dam chain, Bhama Askhed Dam and Pavana Dam while considering inputs from the Irrigation Department and projected drinking water requirements for the coming months. The PMC said the weekly shutdown is intended to conserve the available stock and maintain drinking water supplies across the municipal corporation limits.
The decision follows a Maharashtra Water Resources Department resolution issued on October 5. The resolution directed local self-government bodies to reduce water consumption by at least 10 percent from October 16. It also allows the reduction to be increased if necessary to ensure that available water lasts until August 31, 2027.
The state directions ask local authorities to plan the use of available water resources, prioritise different requirements and take preventive measures against a possible drought-like situation. They also recommend public awareness campaigns to discourage the unnecessary use of drinking water. The PMC has said any changes to the weekly supply arrangement for urgent operational reasons will be communicated through its official website.
The civic body has prohibited the use of drinking water for construction and directed residents to use treated wastewater from sewage treatment plants, borewell water or well water instead. Public and private vehicle-washing centres have been asked to shut down, while PMC-supplied or borewell water cannot be used for washing vehicles, courtyards or footpaths.
Residents have also been asked not to use drinking water to fill private or public swimming pools or maintain gardens. Housing societies with sewage treatment plants must keep them operational, restart non-functional facilities and reuse treated wastewater for gardening and toilet flushing. Hotels, restaurants, private hostels and college hostels have been urged to adopt additional conservation measures.
The PMC has advised households to check taps, flush tanks and pipelines, repair leaks, prevent overhead tanks from overflowing and install automatic float valves where required. Residents have also been encouraged to reuse relatively clean domestic wastewater for gardening and cleaning, avoid unnecessary storage and report leaking pipelines, damaged supply lines and public water wastage.
The civic body warned that unauthorised water connections may lead to action, including criminal cases against those responsible. Water-related complaints can be registered through the PMC call centre at 1800-1030-222, WhatsApp at 9689900002 or the PMC CARE app. The PMC has appealed to citizens to cooperate with the measures intended to secure drinking water supplies until August 31, 2027.
