India, April 6 -- According to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), the demand for water tankers has been increasing between January and March over the past four years highlighting the increasing water scarcity in the city. Between January and March 2021-22, a total 81,361 water tanker trips were recorded which increased to 87,420 during the corresponding period in 2022-23; 104,830 during the corresponding period in 2023-24; and 126,110 during the corresponding period this year (2024-25). The highest demand comes from the villages newly merged with the PMC indicating that these areas are experiencing the maximum water shortage.

A total of 34 villages has been merged with the PMC since 2017 and initially, the estimated population of thes...