El Niño threat puts construction sector in Hyderabad under water stress; builders pay three times more for water | Hyderabad News

Hyderabad: At a time when the city is already grappling with severe groundwater depletion and increasing dependence on private water tankers, the looming threat of El Niño is adding to the woes of the city’s construction industry, with water costs emerging as a growing burden.Industry players say construction sites that earlier depended on borewell water are increasingly relying on private tankers, paying around Rs 3,000 per tanker against the usual Rs 1,000 for borewell water. With restrictions on obtaining fresh borewell permissions amid falling groundwater levels, builders have little choice but to procure water from private operators to keep construction activities going.The impact is already being felt in project budgets, with developers estimating that water-related expenses have pushed construction costs up by around Rs 10 per sqft. They fear that projects scheduled for handover by mid-2027 could be delayed by up to six months, pushing completion timelines to the end of 2027 or even into 2028.The situation is particularly concerning in several parts of the western corridor, including Miyapur, Kukatpally, Gachibowli and HITEC City, where construction activity remains high. Smaller builders and standalone residential projects are among the worst affected, say builders.“The burden has already started mounting. Even a standalone residential building with five to seven floors is forced to spend around Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 every month on private water tankers. Such buildings require at least one tanker every alternate day. The situation could worsen from Dec, when reservoir levels are expected to come under further pressure and groundwater availability could hit rock bottom, eventually slowing construction activity,” said U Uday, president of the Cyberabad Builders Association.Builders say larger residential projects and gated communities are facing a bigger challenge, given their substantial water requirements. “Projects comprising over 500 units could need 10 to 15 tankers daily in the absence of groundwater to meet construction needs, including concrete curing, mixing building materials and workers’ domestic requirements. An estimated 350 – 400 ongoing residential projects across Hyderabad are feeling the pinch of the water crisis,” said a key representative of the Telangana Builders Federation.Treated water finds few takersMeanwhile, the HMWSSB’s green water tanker initiative is beginning to gain traction, with a few developers coming forward to use treated water from sewage treatment plants (STPs) for concrete curing, gardening, landscaping and other non-drinking purposes. A developer in Cyberabad is currently sourcing 90,000 to 1.2 lakh litres of treated water daily from the Kokapet STP. The water is being transported through green tankers in three to four trips a day, with each tanker carrying 30,000 to 40,000 litres. Similarly, one of the top developers under the Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation (MMC) has adopted treated STP water for construction activities.