Mangaluru to begin water rationing from May 1

Mangaluru: Deputy Commissioner and Administrator of the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC), Darshan HV, said that the MCC will introduce rationing in water supply from May 1. The rationing is aimed at ensuring that fringe areas in Surathkal and parts of Mangaluru city, which fail to receive adequate water due to low pressure, get sufficient water.

Speaking on the sidelines of a phone-in programme held at the Administrator’s chamber at the MCC, he said the rationing would apply only to the distribution of water supply, while there would be no rationing at the source in Thumbe. About 160 MLD of water will be pumped daily from Thumbe. However, water will be supplied at full force to Surathkal areas on one day and to Mangaluru city on the next day. Some fringe areas such as Krishnapura, Katipalla, and Dambel fail to receive water daily due to pressure-related issues. To ensure that all areas receive adequate water, such a system will be introduced.

The water level in the Thumbe vented dam, which supplies water to Mangaluru, has reached 4.53 metres. There is 18.53 metres of water in the AMR dam situated upstream of the Thumbe vented dam. As areas in the Western Ghats are receiving rainfall, there is a small quantity of inflow into the Nethravathi river. If the water level dips further in the dam, water from the AMR dam will be released to the Thumbe dam later in May. The demand for water is higher during summer. There is enough water to meet requirements until June 10, he added.

Responding to a query on illegal water connections in the en route villages from Thumbe to Mangaluru, officials said there were illegal connections at 58 locations initially.

The DC said, “Once all the illegal connections are identified, we will discuss what best can be done to collect water bills from these connections. Already, the 20 MLD water treatment plant at Ramalkatte is ready, of which 10 MLD is meant for supplying water to the en route villages. Once all the multi-village schemes are completed and water supply is ensured, we will decide on further action,” he added.

Desilting works

As preparation for the monsoon, the DC said that desilting works have been taken up at a cost of Rs 4 crore. Tenders have been floated for works to be taken up in 32 packages. Works under 27 packages have already commenced. The remaining five package works will be taken up within a week.

As many residents complained that they were not aware of the desilting works being undertaken, two to five local residents have been included in a committee in each ward and have been informed about the desilting works.

As rains are expected in June, contractors engaged in works under the Jalasiri project and GAIL piped gas connections have been asked to complete all digging works immediately and take up restoration works to ensure that dug-up areas are restored before the monsoon. Under the Jalasiri project, pits cannot be filled immediately after digging, as the flow of water has to be checked. However, ward-wise tasks have been assigned to complete the work before the monsoon, he added.