NMC puts Rs 900 crore cement road projects on hold as Nagpur faces water shortage

The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has put cement concrete road projects worth about Rs 900 crore on hold for now, amid growing concern over water shortage caused by inadequate rain in the district.

The decision has hit the fifth phase of the city's road concreting programme. With water conservation given top priority, several planned infrastructure works under this phase have been pushed back.

Initially, 135 roads had been selected for the project. After proposals from legislators and corporators, the number of roads was raised to 265. In this phase, roads with a total length of about 900.22 km were planned to be concreted.

The corporation has decided to keep work suspended for now because building cement concrete roads requires a large quantity of water.

According to the information provided, Nagpur district has recorded its lowest rainfall in 18 years this year. Meanwhile, the water level in the dams supplying the area is said to be about 58 per cent, so the administration is being careful about water use.

The administration has also warned of action against those who waste water. The aim is to ensure that the available stock is used wisely and carefully.

Overall, the corporation has given priority to drinking water supply and water conservation over completing road works quickly. The road work is expected to stay deferred until the water situation allows it to resume.