OCW is supplying water at 2-metre pressure, required force 12–16 metres
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Nagpur: Even as residents across Nagpur continue to suffer from dismal water supply — with pressure as low as 1 to 2 metres in several areas as against required 12–16 metres — Orange City Water Pvt Ltd (OCW) reportedly skipped a high-level review meeting chaired by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis recently.
The firm's no-show, despite a formal invite from the Nagpur Municipal Corporation's (NMC) water works department, has further angered senior leadership and is being seen as an act of defiance.
TOI earlier reported that Fadnavis directed NMC to begin the process to terminate OCW's contract. A senior civic official confirmed that the order is now being legally vetted to ensure it stands if challenge. "This time, the termination is being done formally and our legal team is involved to avoid any procedural flaws," the official said.
Union minister Nitin Gadkari, present at Sunday's meeting, came down heavily on OCW's longstanding failures, particularly its refusal to increase water pressure. "OCW is supplying water at barely 1–2 metres pressure in many areas. The OCW claims pipelines will burst if pressure is raised to the required 12–16 metres. This only shows OCW's failure to upgrade infrastructure or maintain it," said an official quoting Gadkari.
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Despite operating Nagpur's 24x7 water supply scheme for over a decade, the OCW failed to address the persistent problem of low pressure and uneven supply. Large parts of North and East Nagpur continue to suffer, with water being supplied for just 2–3 hours daily. Many localities remain dependent on water tankers.
NMC had asked OCW to convert low-pressure "red zones" into "green zones" by fixing leakages, removing illegal connections, and deploying real-time pressure monitoring systems.
However, there has been negligible progress.
OCW's absence from the CM's review meet has only hardened the administration's stance. "The OCW was informed and expected to attend. Absence of anyone from the OCW at this crucial juncture is unacceptable and only justifies the need for its removal," said another senior official.
Superintending engineer (water works) Shweta Banerjee confirmed that OCW officials were invited for the meeting, but none was present.
OCW officials were not available for comments.
Notably, Nagpur receives over 750 million litres per day (MLD) from Kanhan and Pench sources, yet non-revenue water — losses due to leakages and theft — remains at over 40%, exposing deep inefficiencies in OCW's operations.
With Gadkari and Fadnavis aligned on the issue and the termination process already underway, OCW's days in Nagpur appear numbered unless it delivers a swift and verifiable turnaround.
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