Deccan Chronicle 12.08.2009
Water Board, GHMC set to merge
Hyderabad
Aug. 11: The minister for municipal administration, Mr Anam Ram Narayana Reddy, on Tuesday told the Assembly that Metro Water Works and Sewerage Board will soon be merged into the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation for better co-ordination.
He said this after the MIM floor leader, Mr Akbaruddin Owaisi, pointed out lack of co-ordination between the GHMC and the Metro Water Board resulting in frequent repairs of drinking water and sewerage pipes.
“In fact, sewerage is also flowing into drinking water pipes because those have not been upgraded since the Nizam period. The Water Board has no funds to take up upgradation of the entire system,” said Mr Owaisi. Other members also raised voice for better co-ordination between the two organisations.
On the death of 13 people in Bholakpur after drinking contaminated water, the minister said the next of the kin of the dead have been given Rs 2 lakh ex gratia already.
Raising serious concern over the quality of drinking water being supplied in the city, members demanded time-bound action plan to provide safe water.
The BJP member, Mr G. Kishan Reddy, and Mr Owaisi asked the government to take up the Krishna Water Scheme Phase-III and complete it at the earliest.
“If the government wants to use Godavari water for drinking purposes, we have no objection. But the project will cost Rs 3,000 crore and will take three years to be completed,” Mr Owaisi added.
“The existing pipelines are not capable of carrying 200 to 240 MGD, whereas the requirement is about 340 MGD. It would be foolish to depend on one source of water for this big city,” the minister said.
He informed that laying of new pipelines for both drinking water and sewerage will be taken up by spending nearly Rs 300 crore.
