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Water Treatment

VMC to desilt drains soon

Wednesday, 29 May 2013 05:24 administrator
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The Hindu              29.05.2013

VMC to desilt drains soon

Staff Reporter

Mounting dues to contractors became a stumbling block for the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) to take up desilting of drains, an annual affair. The contractors have shied away from taking up the desilting works as the Corporation has not cleared their bills for last two years. The Corporation has to pay nearly Rs. 77 lakh to them.

The VMC, this year, has estimated that the desilting of drains would cost Rs. 40 lakh and invited tenders. The contractors, who have the machinery and equipment for desilt works, have not responded to the tenders. Instead, they demanded that the Corporation provide working capital if the works were to be taken. The officials promised that the VMC would clear a partial amount of the pending bills, and convinced them to file their tenders. The VMC will shortly clear about Rs. 20 lakh dues to them, sources say.

The tenders have been finalised, and work orders were issued. The desilting works are scheduled to be completed before June 15. As many as 10 major drains, including Guntatippa, Nuzvid Road drain, Nizam gate and outfall drains near Kabela, would be desilted, officials say.

 

Civic chief extends nullah desilting deadline by a week

Tuesday, 28 May 2013 12:23 administrator
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The Times of India            28.05.2013

Civic chief extends nullah desilting deadline by a week

AURANGABAD: City civic commissioner Harshdeep Kamble on Monday extended the deadline for desilting nullahs at 60 locations in the city to June 7, and directed all the executive engineers in the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to complete the work before the stipulated time.

A senior civic official said on the condition of anonymity that desilting work on many locations had recently begun. "About 50% work has been completed by the civic body. In the remaining days, we would be able to complete about 35% of the desilting work," he said, indicating that desilting of all the nullahs might not be possible before June 7.

In its drive, the civic body is planning to clear beds of all the nullhas in the city before the monsoon season. In the first phase, the AMC would remove silt before the rainy season, while in the second phase, it would carry out the work throughout the season. Earlier, the civic body had said that desilting of nullahs would be carried out in four months.

The tendering process for the work was initiated on May 6, said another official. "This year, we started inviting tenders well in advance, but there were no takers for desilting some of the nallahs. Moreover, the AMC's financial budget for the current year has not been not approved yet. However, realizing the importance of the work, we started working on the project with an estimated cost of Rs 1.5 crore," he said.

The AMC has allotted the work of cleaning up patches of nullahs in different municipal wards to different agencies. Further, to keep a track of the desilting work, the AMC is also taking photographs of the ongoing process. 

 

BWSSB, former mayor stresses on use of recycled water

Tuesday, 28 May 2013 12:19 administrator
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The Times of India            28.05.2013

BWSSB, former mayor stresses on use of recycled water

BANGALORE: P R Ramesh, former mayor of Bangalore recommended that the government, BWSSB and BBMP should stop imposing rain water harvesting on citizens but channelize rain water through storm water drains to tanks and lakes and rejuvenate the water catchment areas of Bangalore.

"It is only 20% of the water that we consume while BWSSB pumps 1200 MLD of water everyday for the city spending thousands of crores. Tertiary and secondary treated water should be used for non potable purposes. The argument that it is sewage water which is treated fails because even Cauvery water which is pumped is also treated and sent," said Ramesh.

He criticized the government for thinking to meet the present crisis and then sit back and leave the city at the mercy of rains. "The government should think beyond Cauvery'. Is there a way to tap other sources like Nethravathy or Hemavathy. How can ground water table be replenished should be the main concern for the water board and government. They should also remove all encroachments around catchment areas or lakes," he added.

Meanwhile, the BWSSB chief Gaurav Gupta also stressed on creating mass awareness for using recycled and treated water. At the workshop organized in the board based on the MoU signed with Singapore on tertiary treatment, he said, "We need specific plans for developing capabilities to use treated sewage as a sustainable source of water. We have to emulate Singapore and other countries on loss reduction and leakage control of water".

BWSSB is sharing technological knowledge on developing capabilities for alternate sources of water through recycle and reuse of reclaimed water. The understanding was made on October 9, 2012.

Technical issues related to feasibility are being discussed in the four-day workshop and how to tap various means to educate the public with the involvement of the NGOs.

 
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