While frequent load-shedding has become a concern for Dhaka residents, people in several neighbourhoods, including East Senpara, East Kazipara, Ibrahimpur and East Rajabazar, say power outages have become an unexpected opportunity to collect water.

Residents said the water crisis has persisted for around six months and worsened in recent months, partly because many households use powerful motors to draw water directly from Wasa lines, leaving little or no water for others.

“We get very little water from the supply line every day. That is why we wait for load-shedding. When the power goes out, people who have motors connected to the supply line cannot operate them. So, the water pressure increases, and we are able to collect some water,” said Faruk Mollah, 55, of Miabari Road in East Kazipara.

Several thousand residents, including those living in tin-shed houses along Miabari Road, are among the worst affected.

Faruk said load-shedding occurs three to four times a day and is the only opportunity for many residents to collect water.

Ibrahim Khan, 18, a mason’s helper in Uttar Ibrahimpur, said his family is considering leaving the area because of the shortage.

“We work throughout the day. If we do not get sufficient water, it becomes difficult even to take a proper bath. We have to fetch water from other areas,” he said.

In Senpara Parbata, around 25 tin-shed houses are also facing severe shortages. Billal Hossain, a caretaker, said 12 of 13 tenants had already left.

“Water usually comes for around 12 hours, but the flow is so low that residents cannot collect enough for their daily needs,” he said.

Nazrul Islam, caretaker of an eight-storey building in Uttar Ibrahimpur, said its 17 flats receive water for about two hours around midnight. Most residents now depend on water jars.

Rashidul Islam, a pump operator in East Kazipara, said falling groundwater levels had reduced production from around 2,200-2,400 litres per minute to 1,200-1,400 litres.

“Those living at the farthest ends of the supply lines are suffering the most. People with powerful motors, however, are able to secure water,” he said.

Residents of East Rajabazar have also faced an acute water shortage for 15-20 days.

Fatema, a resident, said four to five multi-storey buildings along the same supply line are affected.

“The entire line has a problem. We get a little water, but not enough,” she said, adding that supply sometimes improves after repairs but deteriorates again within days.

Residents are storing whatever water they receive in bottles and containers for bathing and washing, she added.

A Dhaka Wasa official said the crisis in East Kazipara, Ibrahimpur and Kafrul under MODS Zone-10 has worsened due to declining pump production and load-shedding.

In Kafrul, a new pump at Swadhinata Sarani in Kochukhet is awaiting an electricity connection, which is expected within a week. Once operational, it will supply water around the clock, he said.

In East Kazipara, replacement work on the Kazipara Gyanadip water pump is expected to be finished within a month. Until then, Wasa is continuing rationed distribution.

The situation is more complicated in Ibrahimpur, where three of the four existing pump compounds have no space for replacement wells. Wasa is seeking locations for new pumps and supplying water through rationing.

As a long-term solution, the authority is connecting Ibrahimpur to the distribution network of its ongoing Gandharbpur Water Treatment Plant project, the official said.

Meanwhile, residents of Jurain and Shyampur yesterday held a human chain and torch procession near the Jurain rail gate, protesting prolonged gas and electricity shortages and warning of a larger movement if the crisis is not resolved.

Protesters alleged that 1.5–2 million people in the area were suffering from severe disruptions to gas and electricity supplies.

Jurain resident and activist Mizanur Rahman said many households in the broader Dhaka-4 constituency had gone without adequate gas for days, weeks or even years despite paying their bills.

They vowed to continue organising residents and hold further programmes if the crises persist.