It was a hectic year for Water Board
Mandatory installation of Rainwater Harvesting System, setting up of call centres to address water woes, shifting of utility lines to facilitate road widening projects and Metro work marked the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board’s calendar of events in 2011.
The Board setting a deadline of 24 - 48 hours for engineers to resolve issues related to drinking water and sanitation was yet another of its initiative in the past year.
Although call centres enabled quick resolution of water problems, it is yet to become popular among citizens.
The BWSSB, which supplies drinking water to six lakh consumers in the City is expected to widen its network next year.
Failure to tackle clogs
Despite sustained efforts the Board is unable to prevent frequent clogs and overflow of drains during rains, as a majority of its lines run through stormwater drainages in the City.
Work on major water lines on Nimhans Road, Millers’ Road, Mysore Road and Old Madras Road were taken up in 2011.
RWH mandatory
Making installation of rainwater harvesting (RWH) system compulsory in the City was a notable move of the BWSSB. The Board has set December 31, 2011, as the deadline for installing RWH.
Despite resistance by certain quarters of citizens to the compulsory installation of RWH, as many as 30,000 houses and more than 100 government buildings in the City have already incorporated RWH systems.
The much awaited BWSSB’s ambitious project - Cauvery IV Stage II Phase - which is expected to supply an additional 500 million litres of water to consumers in the City, will be commissioned in March 2012.
Though the project is progressing at a steady pace, it is frequently beset by hurdles resulting from shortage of skilled labourers, who are primarily migrants from West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Orissa. Indefinite strike by sand truckers proved a setback to the Cauvery project.
In the new year, the BWSSB along with other agencies will be organising the first ever World Water Summit in Bangalore.
