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By:

Rajendra Pandharpure

15 April 2025 at 7:55:54 pm

Pune’s drought could dry up business

Water rationing threatens to hit the city’s wedding industry, construction sector, retail trade and livelihoods. Pune : Pune is beginning to feel the economic sting of drought. A 10 percent cut in the city’s water supply has already been implemented, and the municipal administration has indicated that the reduction could rise to 20 percent or more over the next two to three months. What appears at first to be a water-management crisis could soon become a wider economic problem, affecting...

Pune’s drought could dry up business

Water rationing threatens to hit the city’s wedding industry, construction sector, retail trade and livelihoods. Pune : Pune is beginning to feel the economic sting of drought. A 10 percent cut in the city’s water supply has already been implemented, and the municipal administration has indicated that the reduction could rise to 20 percent or more over the next two to three months. What appears at first to be a water-management crisis could soon become a wider economic problem, affecting businesses, construction activity, employment and household budgets. The Pune Municipal Corporation has begun shutting off the water supply every Thursday. Swimming pools and vehicle-washing centres have been closed, while the use of water for construction has been prohibited. The state government has directed the civic administration to ensure that the reserves in the Khadakwasla dam chain, which supplies Pune, last until August 2027. The challenge could become more acute in the months ahead. Meteorological experts have forecast a milder winter and significantly higher temperatures this year. If these predictions hold true, increased evaporation could place further pressure on the city's water reserves, potentially necessitating stricter rationing. For residents accustomed to a relatively abundant water supply, cuts of 20 percent or more would demand a substantial adjustment in daily life. Intense Pressure The economic consequences are beginning to emerge. The closure of vehicle-washing centres has deprived young people employed in low-skilled jobs of their livelihoods. Swimming-pool closures have similarly affected security guards and lifeguards. These may appear to be small, isolated losses, but they expose a larger problem: when water-intensive businesses are forced to shut down, the burden falls disproportionately on workers with few financial reserves and limited employment alternatives. The impact could spread to Pune’s lucrative wedding industry. The wedding season traditionally gathers momentum after Tulsi Vivah in the month of Kartik, generating business worth more than Rs. 200-250 crore. Pune has long attracted affluent families from outside the city who prefer its venues and facilities for wedding celebrations, partly because of its historically reliable water supply. Persistent restrictions could undermine that advantage. Wedding venues, caterers, hotels and other service providers depend on a dependable water supply to operate. If rationing becomes more severe, organisers may reconsider their choice of venue, while businesses could face higher operating costs and disruptions. An industry that generates substantial seasonal revenue also supports a network of workers and small enterprises, making the potential economic fallout wider than the immediate loss of bookings. Rural-Urban Connection Pune’s commercial fortunes are also linked to the health of the rural economy. A good agricultural harvest typically improves rural incomes, supporting spending on goods and services in urban markets. When farm earnings weaken, that spending tends to contract, affecting traders, retailers and other businesses. If rural incomes remain subdued, the city’s commercial sector could face an additional headwind at a time when water scarcity is already threatening business activity. The interaction between agricultural distress and urban water shortages could therefore deepen the economic slowdown. Construction presents another major vulnerability. Like many large cities, Pune depends heavily on real estate and infrastructure development to sustain economic activity and employment. Construction projects generate demand across a broad network of industries, from building-material suppliers and transport operators to contractors and daily-wage workers. A prolonged restriction on construction-related water use could delay projects, raise costs and disrupt work schedules. If projects stall, the effects will extend beyond developers to workers, suppliers and businesses that depend on the real estate sector. Rising Inflation For ordinary citizens, the prospect of tighter water rationing comes amid an already difficult cost-of-living situation. Food and restaurant prices have risen sharply. A cup of tea now costs more than Rs. 30, while a serving of idli-sambar can exceed Rs. 90. Even street food, traditionally an affordable option for working people, has become increasingly expensive. These prices illustrate the pressure on household budgets, particularly those of workers whose incomes have not kept pace with rising costs. If water shortages push up operating expenses for restaurants, caterers and other businesses, consumers could face further increases. The extent of any additional price rise will depend on how severe and prolonged the restrictions become. The working class is particularly exposed. Workers in vehicle-washing centres, swimming pools, construction and allied services may lose income precisely when everyday necessities are becoming more expensive. Unlike larger businesses, many such workers have little capacity to absorb a prolonged interruption in earnings. Pune’s immediate challenge is to conserve enough water to carry the city through the coming months. Yet the implications of the drought extend well beyond household taps and civic supply schedules. Trade, real estate, hospitality and seasonal businesses all depend, directly or indirectly, on the availability of water. The two sectors facing particular uncertainty are trade and real estate. The former could suffer from weaker consumer spending and disruptions to commercial activity; the latter could be affected by restrictions on construction and the risk of project delays. The consequences would be felt across employment and the wider urban economy. Pune’s residents and businesses have not had to contend with water cuts of 20 percent or more on a sustained basis. Adapting to such restrictions will be difficult, especially if temperatures rise and the drought persists.

Crossed Wires in Dhaka

Writer: Dr. V.L. Dharurkar
Dr. V.L. Dharurkar
Jun 3, 2025
4 min read

As Bangladesh descends into crisis, India must recalibrate its foreign policy to safeguard regional stability while guarding its own interests.

In a year already pockmarked with global unrest, Bangladesh has been swiftly sliding into a political and institutional crisis that could upend the balance of power in South Asia. Since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ouster, what was meant to be a temporary interim arrangement has degenerated into a perilous standoff between student protestors, a beleaguered leadership and a restive military. At the heart of this maelstrom is Professor Mohammed Yunus - no stranger to leadership in civic life, but who now finds the mechanics of statecraft considerably more turbulent.


Yunus, who was ushered in as caretaker by the Students’ Union in a moment of idealistic fervour, has since become the target of their ire. The very coalition that brought him to power now accuses him of dithering in the face of collapse. Promised reforms which were chiefly aimed at creating conditions for free and fair elections have now stalled. As the days drag on without a credible roadmap to a national vote, pressure from both the military and street agitators intensifies. The professor’s academic laurels offer little armour against the realities of a fracturing state.


The immediate future is fraught. Minorities, particularly Hindus and Christians, find themselves vulnerable amid rising communal tensions. Secular institutions, long the backbone of Bangladesh’s post-1971 identity, are under intense assault not just from religious hardliners, but also from radicalised student groups who blur the lines between revolutionary zeal and outright anarchy. The campus protestors, once vanguards of democracy, are now disrupting the very institutions they once sought to reform. It is not merely the government that is under siege, but Bangladesh’s constitutional order.


The prospect of elections in such a volatile environment seems optimistic, if not delusional. The Awami League, Sheikh Hasina’s once-dominant party, now banned and cornered, is calculating a return. Should the judiciary lift restrictions, Hasina is expected to dramatically reappear on Bangladesh’s political stage, ready to resume her old rivalry with the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) and its matriarch, Khaleda Zia. The two women have long personified the country’s bipolar political order. But this time, there is a third axis in play: the student movement, or rather, the new experimental political entities it has spawned.


A triangulated power struggle is taking shape. Who will the student-led formations align with, if anyone? Will they veer left-of-centre, demanding wholesale reform? Or slide into nationalist populism? The answers remain elusive. What is clear, however, is that Bangladesh is undergoing a political experiment with no predictable outcome.


This moment of flux poses considerable risks not just for Dhaka but also for New Delhi. Bangladesh’s internal instability naturally has direct implications for India, particularly in the sensitive northeastern states which share porous borders with the country. A breakdown in law and order could precipitate refugee flows, boost insurgent activity and create a vacuum easily exploited by extremist groups with cross-border agendas. Already, some Indian intelligence reports suggest heightened chatter among fundamentalist organisations seeking to capitalise on the chaos.


India has long styled itself as a reluctant regional hegemon, intervening only when its interests are directly at stake. But this is one such moment. With Bangladesh deeply dependent on Indian trade, infrastructure and energy, Delhi possesses the leverage (though perhaps not yet the will) to help steer its neighbour away from disaster. What is required is not military meddling, but diplomatic finesse. India must support the restoration of democratic order while discreetly encouraging the emergence of pro-India voices across Bangladesh’s political spectrum.


New Delhi’s policy should be guided by a blend of pragmatism and principle. Stability is the immediate priority, but so too is the preservation of a secular and democratic Bangladesh. That is not merely a moral concern but a strategic imperative. A Bangladesh dominated by hardline factions or a politicised military could complicate India’s eastern frontier and reverse decades of gains in cross-border cooperation.


The crisis also offers an opportunity - albeit a narrow one - for India to recalibrate its neighbourhood diplomacy. For too long, it has oscillated between aloofness and overreach. In the case of Bangladesh, it must act with deliberate urgency, deploying its soft power, economic clout and diplomatic channels to foster a political settlement. Supporting independent electoral institutions, nudging the judiciary to safeguard civil liberties and ensuring that all legitimate parties (including the Awami League) can contest elections freely, are all vital steps.


The father of India’s Constitution, B.R. Ambedkar had once observed that the test of a democracy is not in moments of comfort but in how it behaves under duress. India would do well to apply the same standard to its neighbourhood policy. Ensuring that Bangladesh emerges from its current turmoil as a functioning, secular and democratic state is not just an act of regional altruism but a geopolitical necessity at the moment.


The coming weeks will be decisive. Yunus’s fate may be sealed. The military’s ambitions may sharpen. The students’ movement may split or consolidate. But amid this flux, the only certainty is that the outcome will reverberate beyond Bangladesh’s borders. India must ensure that when the dust settles, it is not caught unprepared.


(The author is a researcher and expert in foreign affairs. Views personal.)

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