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Water Supply

Rs. 25 crore sought for mitigating drinking water shortage

Saturday, 25 July 2009 05:41 administrator
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The Hindu 25.07.2009

Rs. 25 crore sought for mitigating drinking water shortage

Special Correspondent

VELLORE: The Vellore district administration has decided to send proposals seeking Rs. 25 crore from the State government for undertaking works to mitigate the drinking water scarcity in the municipal, town panchayat and village panchayat areas in the district, as per a decision taken at a consultation meeting of officials of various departments at the Collectorate here on Friday, according to C. Rajendran, Collector of Vellore, who presided over the meeting. The meeting was held in the backdrop of the dwindling groundwater table and the drying up of the deep borewells as a result of the continuous exploitation of groundwater through borewells owing to failure of the monsoon. The meeting also reviewed the works being undertaken by the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board and the local bodies to deepen the borewells and repair the motorised pumpsets with the funds initially sanctioned by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister for drought relief. It also assessed the need for more funds to undertake the works.

The Collector said that mitigation of the drinking water scarcity among the public was a priority work being undertaken by the government, and therefore asked the officials to realise this and take immediate action to solve the problem.

Last Updated on Saturday, 25 July 2009 05:59
 

Metro Water ‘to help’ township

Wednesday, 22 July 2009 07:44 administrator
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Deccan Chronicle 22.07.2009

Metro Water ‘to help’ township

July 22nd, 2009
By Our Correspondent

Chennai, July 21: While the taxpaying Chennaiites complain of short supply from drinking water, the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) is seriously considering the diversion of 28 MLD (million litres of water per day) from the Chembarambakkam reservoir to a private township coming up on the city outskirts, official sources said. As per the proposal, water would be pumped to the township, located 38km from the Chemabarambakkam water treatment plant on Oragadam-Singaperumal Koil road, via 600 mm pipelines. Copies of related documents that are available with this newspaper indicate that CMWSSB engineers, on receipt of the realtor’s application last year, prepared an outline proposal to the tune of Rs 48.87 crore for supplying water for his township. Recommending that Rs 60 per kilolitre could be charged from the realtor, metro water experts, in their note sent to the board on November 20, 2008, predicted annual revenue of Rs 60.48 crore to the CMWSSB from the deal.

Ironically, the same experts had rejected the proposal on November 18, 2008, arguing that the township fell outside the metropolitan area. The board supplies 70-90 litres of water per day per person in the city and outskirts, as against the prescribed 170 litres a day. The private deal involves a water volume that could meet the requirements of four lakh Chennaiites a day. While a senior official involved in the project admitted “pressure from above” to clear the proposal now, CMWSSB managing director Shiv Das Menon said he was not aware of the transaction.

 

Stormwater drain planned in Maduravoyal

Wednesday, 22 July 2009 04:22 administrator
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The Hindu 22.07.2009

Stormwater drain planned in Maduravoyal

K.Lakshmi

Residents demand that the lake and the flood carrier channel be cleared of encroachments

— Photo: K.Pichumani

BLOCKING FLOW: Encroachments on the Maduravoyal lake are cited as one of the reasons for inundation of the nearby localities during monsoon. Residents of the municipality want them removed and the waterbody desilted.

CHENNAI: In an attempt to ward off a repeat of last year’s monsoon-related woes, the Maduravoyal Municipality proposes to construct a stormwater drain covering many areas that were affected then.

Residents said that the existing stormwater drain to carry the surplus water from the Maduravoyal lake through the Alapakkam Main Road did not help to prevent inundation of several localities last year. Many localities such as Metro Nagar, Krishna Nagar, Ayyavu Nagar and Chakrapani Nagar remained under sheets of water for several days last monsoon.

S. Nathan, a resident of Krishna Nagar, said that the capacity of the drain constructed along the Alapakkam Main Road was not sufficient to carry the rainwater collected from areas upstream such as Iyyappanthangal, Vanagaram and Porur.

Officials of Maduravoyal Municipality said that another stormwater drain would be constructed on the Mettukuppam Road, at a cost of Rs.2.90 crore. The length of the facility would be nearly 3 km and it would drain the rainwater into the Cooum river. The new drain is expected to benefit several localities including Pushpa Garden, Ashtalakshmi Nagar and Omshakthi Nagar.

Last year, the local body was involved in pumping out flood water from several localities for more than two weeks.

While about Rs.1 crore for the project would be provided as infrastructure gap filling fund by the Commissionerate of Municipal Administration, funds to meet the remaining cost would be mobilised by the local body. Once the CMA accorded technical sanction for the facility, tenders would be floated, an official of the municipality said. The local body plans to complete the work before the onset of the northeast monsoon.

Residents also demand that the Maduravoyal lake and the flood carrier channel be cleared of encroachments to prevent overflow of surplus water. They complained that the waterbody, which was originally spread over 120 acres, has shrunk to 20 acres.

The municipality has also expedited works to repair the roads damaged in the last year’s rains at a total cost of Rs.60 lakh. The project would cover roads in places, including Thedeer Nagar and Krishna Nagar.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 22 July 2009 04:45
 
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