The New Indian Express 01.11.2010
A panel to find more drinking water
According to sources in the Urban Development Department, the government is contemplating on appointing some environmentalists and water experts to the committee. The committee will be given the work of finding an additional source of water that can sustain drinking water needs of the city for the next 50 years.
This development is an outcome of a meeting between Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and a team of officials from the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB).
The officials apprised Yeddyurappa about the water scarcity that the city was heading for after 2015.
According to BWSSB officials, the population of the city would have exceeded one crore by 2021 and the city would need at least 1,986 MLD of water then. By 2036, the population is expected to be at least 1.5 crore and the city would need 2,844 MLD of water to cater to them.
By 2050, the city would need at least 3,670 MLD of water for a population of over 2 crore.
The committee will explore possibilities and prepare a feasibility report for getting additional water from various sources identified by the government for the purpose.
At present, the city gets 135 MLD from Cauvery I stage, 135 MLD from the project's II stage, 270 MLD from its III stage and 270 MLD from the IV stage.
The water board is pumping only 18 MLD from Tippagondanahalli Reservoir due to lack of water though it has the infrastructure to pump 125 MLD.
It will pump 500 MLD of water from Cauvery IV Stage II Phase project after its completion.
After the completion of Cauvery IV Stage II Phase, all the known sources of drinking water to the city would have been exploited.
