10% water cut from July 1 as rain continues to play truant

Additional Municipal Commissioner Rajiv Jalota said the Upper Vaitarna and Modak Sagar dams,which together account for 29 per cent of water supply,have the lowest levels at present and that is a sign of worry. “From 1996 to 2011,the average rainfall in June in catchment areas has been 2,463 mm. At present,there is a 7-57 per cent deviation from that average. We are hoping that rainfall will pick up in July and August but we cannot be sure of the same. Hence it is advisable to impose a minor cut and start saving water to prepare for the worst case scenario,” he said. “Depending on the rainfall over July,the civic body will decide its further course of action on whether to continue the cut or roll it back.”

Corporators blamed the BMC for poor planning. Earlier,owing to poor rainfall,the BMC had to cut 30 per cent water supply in 2009. While some corporators asked if the civic body had plans to carry out artificial cloud seeding this year or set up desalination plants,others criticised the civic body for being unable to arrest leakages that amount to 20 per cent of the daily supply.

Jalota replied that owing to the high cost of production in the desalination process (Rs 70 for 1,000 litres as opposed to the current Rs 11 per 1,000 litres),the technology is not feasible for the city.

“Cloud seeding is also an expensive technology,so we are focusing on water lost due to leakages. Anti-leakage drives have been taken up in all wards. Even recycling grey water is expensive and hence we are planning to sell it to large companies that currently consume potable water in large quantities,” he said.

The BMC and the state government are jointly discussing the possibilities of involving private companies to carry out desalination. Moreover,the newly constructed Middle Vaitarna dam will be used next year if water level in it reaches 158 metres this year.

The BMC’s current supply is 3,350 million litres per day,short of the 4,200 mld demand.