Bore wells for the Baug

With talks of redevelopment, the century old Nowroze Baug has taken steps in anticipation of a better future by sinking bore wells at three cardinal junctions inside its premises and installing a one lakh liter water tank with a filtration plant behind the Recreation Hall, as per a write-up sent to Parsiana by Nariman E. Mehta of the Nowroze Baug Maintenance and Development Committee.

The inauguration of the project on November 15, 2008 began with a thanksgiving jashan at the Recreation Hall at 9.15 a.m. attended by all the tenants. Guest of honor, Dhan Gagrat, managing member of the R. N. and N. N. Wadia Trusts congratulated the Baug and its leaders for the project, the first of its kind in a baug, and echoed the sentiments of the late Neville Wadia who had referred to Nowroze Baug as being "most progressive and dynamic.”

Jashan at Nowroze Baug (above) and plaque for bore wells

Gayomard Katha­wala, chairman of the Nowroze Baug Maintenance and Development Committee then encapsulated the history of water supply in the Baug, as per the write-up. At first, when there were fewer consumers the original water supply network served its purpose well. As the needs of tenants increased and the water supply remained constant, users began to feel the pinch. This led to the construction of a tank between Blocks R and P, which Neville Wadia had inaugurated. Later, when this tank proved inadequate, Rohinton and Hormuz Mehta came forward with the idea of sinking bore wells. Of the five points that were sunk, three proved productive. The cost of the project worked out to Rs 22 lakhs, of which the trust paid half the amount. The remaining Rs 11 lakhs, which was to have been the contribution of the tenants, was provided entirely by the Mehta brothers in memory of their late parents Dinamai and Jamshedji. Kathawala thanked the Mehtas for their munificent contribution as well as their persistent efforts and zeal in making the project a reality, the write-up acknowledges.

Hormuz Mehta, the brain behind the automation of the filtration plant, then explained to those present that though bore well water is generally deemed unpotable, it can be rendered safe for human consumption. At Nowroze Baug the bore well water has been channelized through the filtration plant (provided by Ion Exchange) and then stored in a separate tank from which it will be connected to the main pipes that supply Bombay Municipal Corporation water to the tenants. In order to make it doubly safe, tenants were advised to again filter the water or use an Aquaguard to make it absolutely potable, the write-up states.