The Hindu - Andhra Pradesh 18.08.2009
Water Board mulls alternate day supply in city
J.S. Ifthekhar
| Situation to be reviewed in September before decision is taken; authorities busy drawing up contingency plans |
Authorities hoping that the skies will open up in September and October
At present daily water is being supplied to 3.5 lakh connections
HYDERABAD: With the monsoon playing truant, the Water Board is contemplating switching over to the alternate day supply to conserve its depleting reserves. However, the Board is exercising caution in making an announcement in view of the ongoing Assembly session.
The situation will be reviewed in the first week of September and a decision taken. Though the officials are putting up a brave face, they privately admit that a hard decision is inevitable in view of the failure of monsoon during last three months. Authorities are hoping the skies will open up in September and October, but at the same time they are busy drawing up contingency plans.
At present daily water is being supplied to 3.5 lakh connections in the core city area and L.B. Nagar municipality. Instead of curtailing daily supplies, alternate day supply is considered a best option as people have been accustomed to this earlier.
Nil inflows
What is worrying authorities is the nil inflows into any of the reservoirs supplying water to the city. Osmansagar has got a negligible 0.010 tmcft thanks to rains in its upstream at Janawada while the little water that is shown as inflows into Manjira is what was released from Singur. As a result the overall supply to the city has come down gradually from 336 mgd to 327 mgd.
Supplies from Krishna (180 mgd) and Singur-Manjira (120 mgd) continue. But the drawal from Osmansagar is down from 25 mgd to 20 mgd and since Sunday only 7 mgd is being drawn from Himayatsagar as against 10 mgd earlier. At best the twin reservoirs might last for another two months. In the case of Manjira, water can be drawn through gravity up to December and then it has to be pumped.
“We may have to install 15 pumps in Manjira after two months to pump water,” said S.P. Sharma, Director (Technical), HMWSSB.
He said failure of a CPCDCL transformer at Singur on Sunday affected pumping operations at Lingampally and Khanapur reservoirs. As a result there was a fall of 10 mgd supply to areas in division III, IX and XII.
