PMC to launch mobile app for water tanker booking to curb arbitrary pricing

Pune, October 23, 2026: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is preparing to launch a mobile app within the next two months. Through the app, people will be able to book a water tanker the way they book a cab, and the prices will be clearly displayed. The aim is to curb the excessive amounts charged by private tanker operators. With water cuts increasing in the city, demand for water brought in from outside has gone up.

At present, in the old city areas and the newly merged villages, people pay between Rs 700 and Rs 1,200 for a tanker. The PMC has received complaints that tanker operators charge exorbitant rates. For this reason, the civic body wants to bring the service under rules and make transactions transparent by introducing app-based booking.

The administration has begun the process of building the app. The proposal had come up about six months ago, but it was put on hold in July when the city's dams filled to capacity. Now that concern over water availability has grown, the PMC has taken up the plan again.

Nandkishor Jagtap, chief engineer of the PMC's water supply department, said the tender process was delayed because of the model code of conduct for the Legislative Council election. The process will begin as soon as the code is lifted. The project is estimated to cost about Rs 35 lakh over three years.

The new app will be built on the system that currently runs to send tankers to 104 housing societies in Sus and Mahalunge. It was developed by a private company. The platform records the tanker's registration number, the driver's details and details of PMC officials.

Housing society chairpersons can enter their water requirement in the app. They also learn whether a tanker is available and by when it will arrive. They also receive the tanker's registration number, the driver's contact number and a one-time password (OTP).

After the water is delivered, the OTP is given to the driver, and only then is the transaction considered complete. This shows whether the delivery took place and also increases accountability. The PMC wants to extend this system across the city so that tanker bookings are clean and the scope for overcharging is reduced.

Meanwhile, the civic body has imposed a 10 per cent water cut across Pune. Supply is reduced every Thursday. The step has been taken because of concern over water reserves.

The Khadakwasla dam system, which supplies water to the city, has a stock that differs from the same period last year by less than 3.5 thousand million cubic feet (TMC). Rising temperatures and evaporation could reduce the available stock further.

According to the PMC, if this method of water cuts continues, at least 2.30 TMC of water can be saved over the next nine months. Demand for private tankers is expected to rise, and the proposed mobile app will give people an easier way to book and bring transparency to the tanker service.