India, June 10 -- As the Mumbai Water Tankers' Association withdrew its strike on its second day following the state government's intervention, Hepzi Anthony spoke to its president Jasbir Singh Bira on why the association decided to stop work when Mumbai has just 13.20% of water reserves left, is facing a 10% cut in supply, and the prospect of a delayed monsoon. The collector's office had sent over 200 notices to the owners of ring wells and borewells, from where we procure non-potable water. The notices threatening to seal wells scared the owners since the state government insisted on seeking ownership details of the space around the wells. We have been demanding that the government ease the implementation or enforcement of the regulations under the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA). As per the regulations, we have to fill water from the compound of the well, and the well owner should own 200 sq m of the space around the well, to facilitate parking of the water tanker and filing process. With real estate prices so expensive in Mumbai, it is impractical to expect well owners to own 200 sq m of land around the well. We want the government to withdraw the provision of 200 sq of land around the well to be owned by the well owner. We also demand that the government permit more groundwater extraction, simplify procedures and reduce compliance burdens on us. Mumbai needs 4,665 MLD water every day, of which the BMC supplies 4,100 MLD, while the rest is supplied by water tankers. We also supply water to all construction sites, and about 250 tankers daily to the railways. We operate about 3,000 tankers each, with a capacity of 10,000 litres of water on a daily basis. Our tanker water supply has become critical with redevelopment taking place in a big way. The water needs of Mumbai have escalated rapidly and BMC water supply is increasingly proving inadequate....