Muddy, low pressure

CHANDIGARH, April 27: The City needs 95 million gallons of water per day; the actual availability of water during May and June will be only ...

CHANDIGARH, April 27: The City needs 95 million gallons of water per day; the actual availability of water during May and June will be only about 60 million gallons per day 8230; and that too after augmentation. At present, the City receives only about 50 million gallons per day. The data is all there in the records of the Municipal Corporation. Over the past three days, City residents have noticed a steady decline of water in the taps. Many areas have either remained without water or not gotten enough. Residents of first and second floor flats in Sectors 44, 45, 18, 19 and many other areas are already complaining of low pressure and dry taps. Complaints of muddy water are also coming in.

In fact, the water problem is likely to be acute. The City8217;s underground water reservoirs have a total storage capacity of only about 35 million gallons per day. The Municipal Corporation is building more reservoirs and still more are on paper 8212; the idea is to increase storage capacity to 46 mgd after adding another 11 mgd storage. However, these reservoirs can handle only half the City8217;s daily requirement. Ideally the City should be able to store water sufficient for two days.

In view of the acute shortage of water storage capacity, the Corporation feels an urgent need for creating more storage capacity in the City to meet any emergency.

Since the City receives water through two sources, the Bhakhra Mainline canal and through deep tubewells, the Corporation has drilled and commissioned a few more tubewells to meet the gap between the demand and supply of water. With work on the IVth phase of Kajauli augmentation scheme starting this year, the city will have additional 20 mgd in another four years8217; time after its completion. Atotal of Rs 10 crore out of the Mc budget this year has already been earmarked for the Phase IV project.

While four new tubewells have already been drilled during the year in labour colonies at Kajheri, Bapu Dham, Mauli Jagran and Ram Durbar, making available 1.3 MGD of water, six more tubewells have been drilled at Dhanas colony, Maloya colony, Karsan colony, two at industrial area and another near the Golf Club. Similarly, 14 more tubewells are proposed to be drilled at various places all over the city by August 31, making available additional 5 mgd of water through them.