Water crisis damps Vinayaka Chavithi festivities across Vizag apartments

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Water tankers line up to tap water from a designated GVMC filling point in Visakhapatnam. FILE PHOTO | Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO

The acute water crisis gripping Visakhapatnam has cast a shadow over Vinayaka Chavithi celebrations in apartment complexes and gated communities across some areas in the city.

Grand community celebrations have been replaced by scaled-down rituals and tight budgets, as residents grapple with rising costs for daily water tanker supplies.

With groundwater levels reducing and municipal water supply turning increasingly erratic, households in neighbourhoods such as Madhurawada, PM Palem, and core city zones are forced to spend a substantial portion of their monthly earnings solely on purchasing water. This mounting financial burden of securing tanker supplies for basic domestic needs has severely strained household budgets, leaving families with little to spare for festival contributions.

“Managing monthly household expenses, rent, and exorbitant water tanker bills leaves us with virtually no surplus for festival donations,” said a resident of a gated community from the city’s outskirts.

Traditionally, apartment welfare associations organised elaborate Ganesha festivities, featuring large decorative pandals, vibrant lighting, cultural events, and distribution of community prasadam. This year however, communities have been forced to scale down celebration due to the financial strain.

The crisis has also forced communities to cancel customary mass dinners and cultural programs. Civic activists and resident welfare bodies point out the irony of celebrating a festival dedicated to prosperity while basic provisions like drinking water remain a luxury requiring daily struggle.

As Visakhapatnam prepares to welcome Lord Ganesha, citizens and urban planners alike are urging the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) to prioritise long-term water security measures to restore normalcy to the port city’s neighbourhoods.

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