Smart city heading for severe water crisis

Visakhapatnam: Come summer, the hype created by global summit and International Fleet Review and the smart city tag, will burst as the city is heading for a massive water crisis.

The city has a population of 20 lakh living in 4,25,100 houses. Of them 8 lakh people live in 730 slums. This constitutes 44 percent of the city population living in slums. The Greater Visakhaptnam Municipal Corporation has the distinction of having highest number of people living in slums in India, according to 2011 census.

According to the latest reports, most of these people do not have water tap connections and they depend on the water tankers supplied by the corporation. The city also had 24,000 public taps, which has been now reduced to less than 7,000. These taps were supplying water for one hour on daily basis till January end and now it has been reduced to 45 minutes.

The city as whole including industrial sector needs 120 mgd of water but now the supply is being steadily maintained at 63 mgd.

The corporation draws water from Yeleru, Godavari, Raiwada, Meghadrigedda, Thatipudi, Gosthani, Mudasarlova, Gambheeram and public water supply scheme (ground water).

The water level as on Monday, came down to 69 meters against maximum level of 86 meters in Yeleru, 13 meters against 18 meters in Godavari, 110 meters against 114 in Raiwada, 55 feet against 61 feet in meghadrigedda, 288 feet against 297 in Thatipudi, 29 feet against 35 feet in Gosthani , 167 feet against 169 feet in Mudasarlova, 121 feet against 126 feet in Gambheeram.

As per the agreement, GVMC can draw 5tmc of water from Yeleru reservoir but GVMC is drawing only 2 tmc as 1/ 2 tmc is being supplied to APIIC and remaining to the steel plant.

Similarly the corporation is drawing 16 mgd from Raiwada, 12 mgd each from Tatipudi and Meghadrigedda.
“The sources will reduce as the summer will bring down the water levels in all the reservoirs,’’ said Dr B Ganga Rao, president of city unit of CPM, who representing the Visakha United Peoples Front visited the reservoirs recently along with experts in the field.

He said the poor in the slums would suffer more as the supply will come down and demand goes up in summer.
Talking to this correspondent here, Ganga Rao said not a single MGD was added to the present supply since last 50 years or damaged pipes have been replaced to arrest transmission losses.

He said there was no need for Pattiseema project on which Rs 1,600 crore was spent to pump water for the proposed new capital. Instead that money could have been used for the left canal of Polavaram, which has been completed by 60 percent.

He said as per the 1980 Bachwat award, the city is entitled to draw 23.44 tmc of water from Godavari. But due to the negligence of the government, the entire water is going into sea.

He said the Chief Minister, Chandrababu Naidu, who assumed office 22 months ago did not talk of augmenting the water supply though he has been talking loudly about making the city an industrial hub.

“If the chief minister wants to make Vizag best city in India, he can solve the water crisis by at least building transit reservoir for storing 10TMC of water in Polavaram left canal and get 5 TMC of water from Kateru lift project near Rajahmundry,’’ Ch Narsinga Rao, the State secretariat member of CPM said.

He said it is unfortunate that no contingency plan has been announced yet by the corporation though the day temperature is shooting up steadily.

However the superintendent engineer of water supply (operations and maintenance) P Ananda Rao sounded confident. He said as of now there was no crisis and the Corporation will make contingency plans to tide over t he crisis in summer.

Rao said the corporation is drawing 62 to 64 mgd of water every day of which 15 mgd is supplied to bulk consumers (industries). The remaining is being given to individual homes and semi bulk consumers (hotels, hospitals).

He said only problem is with the Yelleswaram from which the GVMC is entitled to draw 22 mgd through Visakhapatnam Industrial Water Supply Company. But the corporation is drawing only 8 mgd. There is some problem in Gajuwaka and Pendurthi after the merger of five panchayats with the GVMC some years ago, he added.