The Hindu 29.08.2009
2,078 overhead tanks to be built in two districts
Staff Reporter
| ‘Double tax on water unavoidable’ |
Photo: N. Bashkaran 
Clearing doubts: Pankaj Kumar Bansal (centre), Project Director, Hogenakkal Water Supply and Fluorosis Mitigation Project, addressing panchayat presidents at Krishnagiri Collectorate on Friday. —
KRISHNAGIRI: Will there be double tax on water usage? One for Hogenakkal water supplied for drinking and cooking purposes and another for groundwater supplied for other uses. This question was raised by many local body representatives who participated in the meeting of Hogenakkal Water Supply and Fluorosis Mitigation Project held on Friday.
G. Krishnan, Joint Chief Engineer, Hogenakkal Water Supply and Fluorosis Mitigation Project, said that residents had to split water tax into two - one for Hogenakkal water usage and another for groundwater supplied by panchayats.
Addressing the gathering, Project Director, Hogenakkal Water Supply and Fluorosis Mitigation Project, Pankaj Kumar Bansal said that 2,078 overhead tanks would be built in addition to the existing ones in Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts.
He allayed fears on double tax and said it was unavoidable. A separate wing for the operation and maintenance would be created under the direct supervision of a Superintending Engineer with a team of 30 engineers.
Panchayat presidents were asked to submit the list of left out villages under the Hogenakkal Water Supply Project within a week’s time to include them in the project. Schools and educational institutions would be given separate connections under the project. For each school, Rs. 10,000 had been allotted for laying pipes. He said the project had twin components, one is water supply and another one is mitigation of fluorosis in the groundwater.
He said the tender for the project had five packages. Preliminary selection of tenders had been completed.Collector V.K. Shanmugam, Additional Collector Darez Ahmed and other officials participated.
