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Water Supply

Use water judiciously: municipality

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The Hindu      07.04.2017 

Use water judiciously: municipality

With supply of Cauvery River water to those residing in Rasipuram Municipality stopping, officials have asked them to use the available water judiciously.

Municipal Commissioner Krishnamoorthy said that water was supplied to the municipality by the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board (TWAD) through the Rasipuram - Edappadi Combined Water Supply Scheme. Water was drawn from River Cauvery at Nedunkulam village and treated and distributed to the citizens.

Due to poor discharge of water from Stanley Reservoir at Mettur Dam, the flow of water in the river has also dropped. The water does not reach the drawing point. Hence, from April 4, Cauvery could not be supplied to the people.

The commissioner said that people should not waste water from wells and borewells.

 

Metrowater plans digital meters in commercial buildings

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The Hindu         05.04.2017

Metrowater plans digital meters in commercial buildings

Going hi-tech:The meters, which are equipped with GPS technology, will be able to detect leaks.  

Move aimed towards ensuring judicious use of water

Nearly eight years after an attempt was made to introduce water metering system in the city, Chennai Metrowater proposes to revive the plan by fixing water meters in commercial buildings.

As a first step towards ensuring judicious use of water in the burgeoning city, Metrowater proposes to fix digital water meters in 33,000 commercial buildings in the first phase. The process is already on to identify the buildings, including educational institutions and hospitals, that have water-intensive connections.

Eight lakh consumers

At present, there are nearly eight lakh consumers, including those in added areas and a minimum of 10,000 water/sewer connections are added to the network every year. Though the new consumers are directed to have only metered connections, the water agency often does not collect water charges according to the tariff owing to intermittent water supply.

Learning from its past experiences when the mechanical water meters installed proved faulty and the system could not be implemented completely, the water agency now plans to fix digital meters equipped with GPS technology and facilities to detect leaks and accurate reading.

It may be recalled that there was a resistance from residents to install water meters in the past years, owing to faulty meters and non-availability of quality meters

According to sources in the Metrowater, the water agency would install the water meters and recover the cost later from the consumers. This initiative would also help in accounting of water consumption pattern of domestic and commercial customers and improve distribution.

The metering system would be extended to multi-storeyed buildings based on the outcome of the project. “We have not yet taken a decision on the tariff revision. This would be an initial step towards encouraging water conservation and also checking the supply and consumption trends in the city,” an official said .

The water agency is preparing estimates for the project and plans to implement the project in six months. The metering system would be extended to all existing buildings in phased manner to improve revenue and ensure equitable water distribution.

 

Call for reviving rainwater harvesting structures

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The Hindu        23.03.2017 

Call for reviving rainwater harvesting structures

For a cause:Students taking out a rally in Madurai on Wednesday to mark World Water Day.Photo: S. JamesS_James  

Collective efforts must to save waterbodies, say experts on World Water Day

Rallies and awareness campaigns marked the World Water Day celebrations in the city with the Collector K. Veera Raghava Rao leading the residents to preserve waterbodies and revive rainwater harvesting structures.

The Confederation of Indian Industry, Yi Madurai chapter, Madurai Corporation along with Rotary Club of Madurai Central, Nativelead Foundation and various other outfits jointly organised World Water Day 2017 awareness campaign on Wednesday .

After inaugurating a RWH structure on Gandhi Museum campus, the Collector flagged off a rally in which over 2,000 students participated. In his address, Mr. Rao said there was an urgent need to implement RWH system in independent houses, residential apartments and commercial undertakings, if rainwater has to be preserved. “Only when there was participation from the community, the project would be a success...” he stressed and appealed to the youngsters to campaign for rainwater harvesting.

Corporation Commissioner Sandeep Nanduri, Deputy Commissioner S. Shanthi also participated in the rally along with the students.

CII Madurai zone chairman P. Srinivasavaradhan said that Madurai city has around 45 water tanks, linked to the Vaigai river. However, many among these tanks faced challenges of encroachment, dumping of waste, and looked for upkeep. The CII would support every initiative to keep these tanks clean and free from encroachment. Vijaya Darshan Jeevagan , Chair, Yi Madurai Chapter welcomed the gathering. Sivarajah, co-founder Native Angel Network, D. Gunasekar, co chair, Yi Madurai Chapter spoke.

Water experts working with NGOs said that the watertable in the city was alarmingly falling at an all-time low due to various factors. The pollution levels and encroachment of waterbodies had to be addressed to save the city from turning into a desert. Despite digging beyond 500-foot depth there was either no water or very little water emerged at many locations in the city according to a recent study, they shared on the occasion.

Vaananbaa, Rainstock, Palakarangal and other NGOs and volunteers participated in the campaign held throughout the day in different parts of the city.

 


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