Metro Water ready with summer contingency plan

Chennai:

Metro water has prepared a contingency plan to ensure uninterrupted water supply to the city even as the water levels in reservoirs are dipping slowly.

Although the Water Resources Department maintains that the city’s water supply would last till July 31 but Metro Water is taking no chances. Sources said that the water levels have dipped more than 40 to 45 per cent when compared to last year, which has resulted in chalking out the emergency plan. Metro Water feels that through the contingency measures it wants to ensure the supply of 831 MLD of water to the city.

Currently the four reservoirs – Poondi, Cholavaram, Red Hills and Chembarambakkam have a total of 3,944 million cubic feet of water. This constitutes only 35.67 per cent of total water available for the city during the summer. Interestingly, Veeranam lake which has been totally dried up now has a total of 224.60 million cubic feet of water thanks to the efforts of Chief Minister under whose order water has been released.

Sources said that Veeranam has been providing 90 MLD of water for the last 10-15 days. Interestingly, during this moment of crisis due to erratic rainfall and dwindling water in reservoirs, the only saving grace for the city has been the supply of additional 100 MLD of water from the Nemmelli desalination plant.  Currently water is being provided to Indira Nagar, Beasant Nagar, Thiruvanmiyur and PTC Colony, Kottivakkam division, Thoraipakkam division and Sholingnallur. Now Metro water is also planning to provide water to MRC Nagar and other areas.

Meanwhile, as per the contingency plan, Metro Water is planning to rejuvenate acquifer borewells which is providing 35 MLD of water to city. “We are planning to increase it to 25 to 30 MLD,” the source says.

Not only that a survey has been carried out on identifying streetwise handpumps. Some of the existing handpumps are  being repaired or replaced with India Mark II pumps. “The repairs would be over by April 15,” the source said.

Currently, the city has 3,500 handpumps which are being used in various localities. Metro Water has also identified 800 borewells that need to be rejuvenated.

Interestingly, in arid areas plans are underway to take up source augmentation. There are also plans to readjust water resdistribution system besides augmentation of water tankers. But sources feel the contingency plan could not succeed unless Chennaites also come forward to conserve water and follow rain water harvesting. And more than that the city requires the blessings of rain god so that the city can wriggle out of the water crisis