Juhu building shares water with neighbors

Mumbai: The occupants of the Sagar Sameep building in Juhu turned into heroes on Monday and Tuesday during the western suburbs’ widespread water crisis caused by damage to the Andheri east water network. They gave water to people in the neighborhood, mostly slum residents from Shivaji Nagar, Indira Nagar, and Gautam Nagar, from the borewell in their property for three hours in the evening and four hours in the morning on both days.

We had very little water on Saturday, none at all on Sunday, and very contaminated water on Monday. According to slum inhabitant Komal Dhavade, “The building really saved our day, and a lot of us went to take water from them.”

Tilak Shetty, an 80-year-old man who oversaw the water distribution and ensured that nobody skipped the line, stated, “We did whatever little we could.” “People continued coming with buckets, bottles, and even paint cans from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. For that period, we had cut off our society’s access to the borewell, Shetty stated. Water from the borewell is used for the restrooms at Sagar Sameep, which consists of two floors and two lawns.

On Tuesday, a few households received sweet (drinking) water from building occupants. “One woman confided in me that she could not boil water for cooking. I have to give in to her,” Shetty said.

The building’s watchman, Neeraj, was well-appreciated for taking care of running the motor on both days. “My only task was to make sure the engine didn’t overheat. The fact that the locals sometimes help the surrounding community is also a wonderful touch,” he said.

Residents had given neighbors water during a water shortage six months before as well. When one of the slum inhabitants asked for water this time, the locals gladly complied.

Our homes and the slums are separated by a wall, and domestic servants who work there reside with us. They were in the same situation as we were, according to an unnamed building occupant.

The building’s tenants and the slum dwellers’ mutual spirit of collaboration remained unaffected by the former’s complaints about the slums’ increasing population. “Humanitarian ideals must triumph,” emphasized Samir Mangalorkar, a building occupant who had previously voiced concerns over unlawful development in the vicinity. “All we’re doing is compensating for the civic body’s deficiencies.”