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IN DEMAND: A water tanker during dahi handi festival at Lalbaug yesterday. |
Most of the dahi handi mandals used water sprinklers, which increased the demand for water tankers. Water tanker owners admitted that their orders doubled yesterday, as did their rates. S S Malpani of Maheshwari Brothers, a water tanker supplier, said, "We got many orders from dahi handi mandals, with each ordering around two to three tankers.
A dahi handi organiser claimed that he ordered two tankers within a span of four hours because a high-profile politician was going to attend the event. Each tanker has a carrying capacity of 12,000 litres.
Waiting charges
On a normal day, a water tanker would cost anywhere between Rs 700 and Rs 900. But yesterday, the prices were hiked by at least Rs 200, excluding waiting charge of Rs 200 per hour. "We charge Rs 500 per tanker, but during dahi handi we charged an extra of Rs 200 per hour as waiting charges," said another water tanker owner.
Ravi Rangnekar, manager of Laxmi Krupa water supplier at Mahim, who supplies water tankers to Mahim, Byculla, BKC and Khar, said, "Last year we got only five orders, while this year we got 10."
Injured Govindas
Casualties kept city hospitals busy with around 100 patients seeking treatment
- KEM attended to 63 patients for bruises, nine were admitted.
- Sion Hospital attended to nine patients, out of whom two had head injuries and spinal fractures.
- Nair Hospital attended to 11 patients, but none of them were admitted.
- J J Hospital admitted two patients, while six were treated for minor bruises.
(Inputs from Shashank Rao)
