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An 8.3-km-long water tunnel being constructed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) from Thane to Bhandup Complex to increase Mumbais water supply is likely to be completed within the next one and a half years.
The underground tunnel,being constructed from Kapurbawdi in Thane to Bhandup,is part of the proposed Gundavli-Kapurbawdi-Bhandup tunnel and will bring water from existing sources such as Upper Vaitarna,Modak Sagar and Tansa as well as future sources such as Middle Vaitarna,Gargai and Pinjal.
It is basically being planned as a replacement of existing above-the-ground lines. While we are replacing the old lines through the underground tunnel,we are also increasing the capacity, a hydraulic engineer from the BMC said.
The entire line from Gundavli to Bhandup will be 15.1 km long and will have a diameter of 5.5 metres. Both the tunnels are expected to be fully operational by 2014.
A joint venture of Unity Infraprojects and IVRCL Infrastructures and Projects is constructing the tunnel from Kapurbawdi to Bhandup. The tunnel from Gundavli to Kapurbawdi is being constructed at a cost of Rs 1,398.76 crore,while the one from Kapurbawdi to Bhandup costs Rs 1,488.50 crore,including the work of residential quarters for municipal staff at Kapurbawdi.
Work on the tunnel,being constructed at a depth of more than a 100 metres,was started by the end of 2009.
The joint venture in charge of the project said the tunnel is one of the deepest raw underground drinking water project in Asia. Unity Infraprojects and IVRCL,which were given 60 months to complete the project,are constructing the tunnel with a technology called the tunnel boring machine. The machine is used to excavate tunnels through a cross section of soil,sand and rock strata. The tunnel boring machine is an alternative to the blasting or drilling method and limits the disturbance caused to the surrounding area.
Although difficult to construct and transport,the machines are useful for highly urbanised areas.
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