Southern States - Karnataka

Water shortage eases in Raichur

By Our Staff Correspondent

Raichur May 4. Water scarcity in Raichur appears to have ended with the stabilisation of the storage level in the facility at the Rampur Water Works.

The city municipality took timely action to draw water from the Ganekal Reservoir, located at the 109th mile stretch of the Tungabahdra Left Bank Canal (TLBC), to the water works. Thanks to a team of the City Muncipal Council (CMC) headed by M. Eranna, Vice-President, urgent measures were initiated to maintain additional storage in the water works, ensuring water supply to citizens till the onset of monsoon.

Pumping of water from the Ganekal Reservoir into the water works through the TLBC has been going on for the past 10 days. Adequate pumps and labourers have been engaged to draw water from the reservoir, and the process will continue for a week by which time the storage level in the water works facility will fill to capacity (4.5 metres). Earlier, the storage level in the water works depleted to less than half its capacity when release of water into the TLBC was suspended on March 25. It was felt that the storage would be adequate to maintain drinking water supply to the city till the first week of May. The city municipality sought additional funds from the district administration for transportation of water to localities where there was shortage.

The district administration urged the Government to initiate measures to release one tmcft. of water from the Bhadra Reservoir to the Tungabhadra Reservoir to supplement water supply in the TLBC in order to impound water in the water works facility. However, the district administration expressed its inability to release any additional funds.

The local MLA, Syed Yasin, failed to extend any financial assistance from his grant, and the city municipality took up pumping of water from the Ganekal Reservoir into the water works by using its own resources. It spent more than Rs. 3 lakh to pump water from the reservoir, and incurred an additional expenditure of Rs. 3.5 lakh a month to supply water to localities by engaging 12 tankers. It is said the district administration released funds to the city municipality only to make payment to the tanker operators.

According to Mr. Eranna, the CMC has taken up the challenge to augment water supply in the city till the onset of monsoon. The storage in the water works facility will suffice to maintain drinking water supply for next 50 days. Tankers have been engaged to maintain water supply in the extension localities where groundwater source has depleted. However, the city municipality has no surplus funds to meet any additional expenditure in tackling the problem, and it has urged the district administration to release funds.

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