Mumbai: Contaminated water in Santacruz West raises serious health worries for Bageshri CHS families

Families have been forced to rely entirely on bottled and packaged water. File pic/Shadab Khan

For the past 15 days, residents of Bageshri CHS in Santacruz West have been grappling with contaminated drinking water, raising serious health concerns and causing daily hardship. Although the water shows only slight discolouration, which is not easily visible, residents say a foul, unbearable stench and altered taste make it impossible to consume. As a result, families have been forced to rely entirely on bottled and packaged water for drinking and cooking.

Several residents have fallen ill over the past two weeks, reporting symptoms such as stomach infections, nausea and fever, which they believe are linked to the contaminated supply. "The smell itself is enough to tell you something is wrong. Even before boiling, the water gives off a strong stench. It has been over a week that my wife and I have been suffering from an upset stomach. Some neighbours have also developed skin rashes and allergies. For me, it started with throat irritation, followed by severe stomach pain," said Sanjay Patkar, a resident. He added that the situation has disrupted daily life, particularly for senior citizens and children.

Sanjay Patkar, a resident of Bageshree Society in Santacruz, reacts to the foul smell from tap water supplied to the building, which residents say has caused health issues for over two weeks. Pic/By Special Arrangement

Another resident, Rupa Badkar, said they initially suspected a fault in their water purifier. "We thought our Aquaguard was not working properly and needed repairs or a candle change. But when the company technician checked it, he confirmed the filter and candles were functioning fine. He told us the water itself had a foul smell and advised us to boil it even after purification. I visited our family doctor three to four days ago, and he mentioned that many residents from our building had approached him with similar complaints of stomach ache," she said.

Following repeated complaints, officials from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's water department visited the society and carried out temporary measures, including flushing the pipelines. However, the problem has persisted, and the source of contamination has not yet been identified, forcing residents to continue purchasing packaged drinking water.

"We are spending at least R300 to R400 daily on drinking water, apart from doctor fees and medicines. Buying packaged water for an entire building for over two weeks is not feasible in the long run. Clean drinking water is a basic necessity, not a luxury," said Mahendra Chheda, secretary of Bageshri Society.

Civic officials said further checks are underway to trace the cause of the contamination. "We did not receive any complaint 15 days ago. Complaints were received only on Friday last week. Our officials visited the building, checked the water and did not find any foul smell. Even so, considering this is a matter of public health, we checked the water again on Monday morning during supply hours. As residents continued to raise concerns, we collected water samples on Tuesday morning and sent them for testing. We have also directed the society to clean its water tanks as an added precaution," said Pravin Dudhwadkar, engineer, BMC Water Department.