The Hindu               16.05.2013

Works on to plug leak in drinking water pipeline

Action follows complaints from residents of Bharathi Park.

Two days after the residents of Bharati Park complained of sewage mixed water supplied to the area, the Corporation has on Wednesday replaced a damaged pipeline to remedy the situation.

On Wednesday, after ascertaining that the leak had happened because of damage to a drinking water pipeline at the NSR Road – Raja Annamalai Chettiar Road Junction, the Corporation officials swung into action to replace the pipeline. The officials used a cast-iron casing pipe to replace the damaged PVC pipeline.

According to sources, once the work was complete, the water supply managers would pump water to check if there was any further mix of sewage with the drinking water. If there was one, they would identify other spots where the water supply pipeline could be damaged. Else, they would close the work spot and restore supply.

Prior to identifying the aforementioned spot, the water supply managers had dug at a few places at Bharati Park and along NSR Road to know where the leak had happened. Even as they kept digging at a few places, the managers also cleaned the supply lines with chlorine to ensure that the quality of water was good after resumption of supply.

The sources said that if there were no further leaks, the Corporation would supply water by Friday to the areas that got sewage-mixed water on Monday last. Residents of a host of residential colonies in the area had complained that the water supplied resembled black phenyl and was with a foul odour. They had also raised the issue with the Commissioner, G. Latha.

Soon after the issue came to her notice, Ms. Latha asked the water supply managers to coordinate with the engineers in the JNNURM wing to ensure that during the execution of the storm water drain work, no water supply pipeline was damaged because supply of sewage-laced drinking water to the residents was a very serious issue.

She also asked City Engineer in-charge K. Sugumar to ensure that such an incident did not recur.