Covid-19 pandemic, delay in machine import stall rejuvenation of TG Halli reservoir

Project 45% over, say BWSSB engineers. The engineers managed to divert the heavy inflow of rainwater during the monsoon away from the reservoir.

A view of the civil work taken up by the BWSSB at the TG Halli reservoir. 

The pandemic and import of heavy machinery from France and Germany have delayed the rejuvenation of the Thippagondanahalli (TG Halli) reservoir by at least five to six months.

The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) started the project in March 2019 and had finished 45 per cent of the work at the reservoir, 35 kilometres from the city on Magadi Road and once a source of potable water for West and North-Western Bengaluru, but now riddled with silt and pollutants.

Aimed at slaking the thirst of West Bengaluru by 2021, the state government had announced Rs 340 crore for the rejuvenation project, which includes removal of a whopping 13 lakh cubic meters of silt and building sewage treatment plants (STPs) and laying of a fresh pipeline.

The recent heavy rainfall and increased inflow into the reservoir had slowed down the work, although BWSSB engineers told DH that work was not affected due to the rains.

"We have split the work into four categories. About 35 per cent of the work on building the STP has been achieved. We have also completed 73 per cent of pipeline work and 64 per cent of the dredging work. We had planned to complete the project by September 2021. But the Covid-19 pandemic and pending import of heavy machinery from Germany and France have put off the project’s completion to the end of 2021," said S V Ramesh, Chief Engineer, BWSSB.

The engineers managed to divert the heavy inflow of rainwater during the monsoon away from the reservoir.

"We have constantly maintained the water level at 20 to 30 feet. Also, dredging can only be carried out at a depth of 25 feet or below. Any amount of inflow, we have been diverting it constantly," Ramesh said.

After the project’s completion, the TG Halli reservoir will accommodate 2.5 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) of water annually from the Yetthinahole project.

"This will enable us to pump in 110 MLD (million liters per day) into West Bangalore, which will in turn help supply 7 to 8 lakh people with 120 litres/day,” said Ramesh. Currently, about 400 people are working on the project.