The
Indian Express               02.01.2014

Tepid response for water supply improvement project

THE ambitious Water Distribution Improvement Programme (WIDP) for
equitable distribution and effective management of water supply in the
city has received lukewarm response from bidders. Only two firms have
expressed interest in the project so far. The project involves leak
detection, GIS mapping of the existing water supply network, reducing
water contamination and a 24/7 customer support helpline.

“As of now, only two firms have bid for the project. We are
currently scrutinising their proposals and will decide on allotting the
contract only if they fulfil all the criteria of the project,” said
Ramesh Bamble, hydraulic engineer. The project, estimated to cost over
Rs 100 crore, is expected to be implemented in Bandra and Mulund on a
pilot basis, following which it will be implemented across the city.

Under the new project, the BMC also plans to identify sources of water contamination and low pressure areas.

The civic administration, which had planned to begin work on the
project by October 2013, cited bureaucratic delays in the tender
process. “The tender process was delayed due to paperwork, but the
project is now on track and we hope to finish the scrutiny process
soon,” said a senior civic official.

The proposal will finally be sent to the civic standing committee
for approval once the scrutiny process is complete, said officials.
They added that the process is likely to take around three months.

While it had hoped to receive interest from a wider range of
Indian and foreign firms, only two foreign firms – Vonia Water India
Private Ltd and European based Suez Environment Pvt Ltd – bid for the
project.

Of the 3,500 million litres of water that is supplied to the city
every day, nearly 700 million litres is unaccounted for, which means it
is either lost to leakages or is stolen. The total demand for water in
the city is estimated to be around 4,200 million litres daily.