The Hindu 24.12.2010
Pipeline replacement to save 50,000 litres of water a day
| BWSSB chief says work will be completed within 20 days |
Brisk pace:Work in progress to replace pipelines on Hosur Road in Bangalore on Thursday.
Bangalore: The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board's (BWSSB) work on replacing old pipelines on a three-km stretch from Wilson Garden 10th Cross to Dairy Circle flyover may be affecting traffic on the busy road. But once completed, the new pipelines will check wastage of 50,000 litres of water that was literally going down the drain every day because of leakages.
BWSSB Chairman P.B. Ramamurthy, who inspected the work on Thursday, told The Hindu that the pipes had become rusty and corroded as they were laid almost 40 years ago. “We were receiving a lot of complaints from residents of Lakkasandra and Wilson Garden about low pressure and irregular supply to houses located in elevated areas. This was because of the leaky old pipes,” he said.
Pointing out that the cast iron pipes were now being replaced with mild steel and ductile iron pipes (3 km of water lines and 250 metres of sanitary line) at a cost of Rs. 1.5 crore, Mr. Ramamurthy said the new lines would ensure there are no problems for the next 15 years. Alternative arrangements had been made to ensure that water supply to the areas was not affected, he said.
Seven earth movers and 35 workers are working round the clock to complete the work within the 20-day deadline, he said.
Mr. Ramamurthy was accompanied by the area corporators and BWSSB engineers.
Road users and people staying in neighbouring areas were irked by the work and the resultant inconvenience, especially the dust and traffic jams. Prasanna Kumar, who lives near Lalbagh, said he had to park his vehicle at some point and walk for a distance to get to his place.
Meghana Gowda had to get down and walk from Dairy Circle up to NIMHANS as autorickshaws refused to ply on the stretch.
Panting and puffing, Ms. Gowda blamed the civic authorities for creating the inconvenience.
