The Hindu    30.07.2012

Water scheme for five new wards of civic body in the pipeline

 Tiruchi Corporation has decided to execute a new drinking water scheme for the five new wards that have been added to it recently. The five new wards are spread over Tiruverumbur town panchayat, and Pappakurichi, Ellakudi, Keezha Kalkandarkottai and Alathur panchayats, all in the eastern suburb of the city, that have been merged with Tiruchi Corporation following delimitation.

Though the areas are currently served by two combined drinking water scheme in Tiruverumbur area, the new water scheme is intended to increase the per capita water supply to the residents of the five wards to 135 litres a day in line with the norms of Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation of Union Urban Development Ministry.

Currently, residents are getting about 70 to 100 litres a day but the supply is said to be unequal. The drinking water supply augmentation scheme currently under execution in the city at an investment of Rs.221.42 crore with assistance from Japan International Cooperation Agency, was designed prior to the merger of the civic bodies.

The civic body , once the proposal is approved by the corporation council, would approach the Commissioner of Municipal Administration to identify a consultant to design a new water project and prepare the detailed project estimate. The consultant would also be entrusted with the task of exploring sources for financial assistance for the project. As the new project could take about a couple of years to be ready, the corporation has planned to install 50 of the 100 PVC tanks that it plans to acquire shortly in different parts of the five wards as a temporary measure. The tanks would be filled with water through four exclusive tankers to be hired for the purpose. The rest of the 50 tanks would be installed in other parts of the city that face drinking water shortage.