Water woes: civic body banks on rain

The BMC is banking on an ancient technology to tackle water shortage. It is planning to use the age-old wisdom of collecting monsoon run-off from rooftops and courtyards.

The BMC is setting up waterharvesting tanks to collect water from the 2009 monsoon. The water will be put to use at all the civic establishments,the headquarters at CST,hospitals,ward offices,schools and gardens. The civic administration has appointed the state governments Ground Water Surveys and Development Agency (GSDA) to carry out a survey to know where rainwater harvesting can be done and borewells can be set up. It has received a list of 40 gardens where rainwater harvesting tanks will be set up before June. The other locations will be finalised soon.

We want to ensure the water collected is made available in the coming months, said additional municipal commissioner,Anil Diggikar. The initiative will make a difference in the water utilisation,as additional water will not have to be spared for gardens,hospitals,schools and offices.

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The BMCs Save Water Campaign is also set to start on March 23 with a Jal Mela workshop at the All India Engineers Association,Haji Ali. Similar workshops would be conducted at ward levels to make citizens understand the importance of saving water. The civic body is also likely to approach FM channels to spread the message to save water.

The city now receives 3,350 million litre per day (MLD) of which around 650 MLD is wasted. The actual water demand is 4,200 MLD.

The Middle Vaitarna dam project to provide additional 455 MLD expected to be completed in 2011 is likely to be delayed. The Centre has refused JNNURM funds for replacement of the 100-year-old water pipelines from Tansa reservoir and digging of a 17.5-km tunnel from Gundavali to Bhandup.

Helpline in offing
The BMC will soon set up a helpline to solve water problems. On an average,the civic administration receives 2,000 complaints every month regarding leakages and contamination. The four-digit helpline will soon be finalised after approval from the MTNL.

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