YAVATMAL: The irrigation department announced on Saturday that it has reserved over 43 million cubic metres (MCM) of water from nine water resources to combat the impending water scarcity across the district. Since the district has received only 54% of the average rainfall during the monsoon season, it is expecting an acute drinking water scarcity during the summer.

"Taking cognisance of the impending water scarcity problem, we have decided to reserve 36.07 MCM water for the drinking water supply in the gram panchayat and municipal council areas," sources have said. Simultaneously, 6.49 MCM water has been reserved for industrial areas while 0.50 MCM water has been reserved for the lone fish seedling breeding centre in the district, which makes a total of 43.07 MCM water reserved from the water resources at the disposal of the irrigation department.

According to the new parameters, the Ghatanji Municipal Council will get 2.22 MCM water from the Waghadi project while the gram panchayats (GPs) in the tehsil will get 3.15 MCM. Pandharkawada Municipal Council will get one MCM water from Saikheda project while its gram panchayats will get 2.50 MCM. There is a fish seedling centre at Pusad, which will get 0.50 MCM from Upper Pus project, while the GPs and industrial estates will get 2.74 MCM and 0.17 MCM respectively. Wani Municipal Council will get 3.61 MCM water from Navargaon project while its GPs will get one MCM. Digras MC and the GPs in the tehsil will get one MCM each water from Arunavati project.

Pusad MC will get 2.25 MCM and its industrial estate will get 0.25 MCM from Lower Pus project. Umarkhed city will get 5 MCM water from the Upper Penganga project while the GPs in the tehsil will get 2.5 MCM. The adjoining Dhanki will get one MCM while the villages in the hilly areas will get 2 MCM water from the Upper Penganga project.

Meanwhile, the Yavatmal Panchayat Samiti has presented a revised draft action plan for its water supply schemes to the tune of Rs 3.061 crore to the district administration for its approval.

The break up of the expenditure allocation is: tankers (Rs 78 lakh), acquisition of private wells (Rs 71 lakh), new bore wells (Rs 82.40 lakh) and repair of existing tap water schemes (Rs 35 lakh) respectively. The proposed action plan is for the period October 9, 2009, to June 30, 2010.

It may be recalled that the Yavatmal Panchayat Samiti had earlier submitted an action plan involving expenses of Rs 1.93 crore to the district administration. However, the district collector has reportedly sent the proposal back to the panchayat samiti to review the entire water scarcity situation under its jurisdiction and advised the BDO to present a revised and realistic action plan.

However, the meeting held on Saturday under the chairmanship of sitting MP Bhavana Gawali in Babhulgaon tehsil was adjourned to Tuesday (November 10) as the concerned officers of the panchayat samiti have failed to provide the necessary information sought by the members present at the meeting.

Later, Gawali criticised the passive attitude of the authorities towards the burning problems of drinking water and said that she has cautioned the erring officials of stern action if they do not come back on Tuesday with complete information.

"I want to resolve the drinking water problem faced by the residents of both urban and rural areas on a permanent basis," Gawali said and alleged that the officials were keen to combat the drinking water problem on a temporary basis so that they would get fresh allotment every year.

`I am not going to tolerate any officers who are found guilty of adopting a cavalier attitude towards the urgent needs of the people," she warned, but assured to release fund from her local development fund to combat the drinking water problem on a permanent footing.