The Hindu : New Delhi News : `Transmission loss to blame for water crisis'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jul 23, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

`Transmission loss to blame for water crisis'

By Lalit K. Jha

NEW DELHI, JULY 22. The inability of the Delhi Jal Board to reduce massive leakages of water during transmission coupled with inequitable distribution seems to be responsible for the worst ever crisis being faced by Delhiites this summer since 1998.

The traditional reasons often cited officially by the DJB of shortfall in raw water supply from Haryana, increase in Delhi's population of five lakhs per annum and theft of water in unauthorised colonies have only compounded the crisis, but was not "the key" reason, concluded an internal confidential note prepared by the DJB.

Exposing the inefficiency of the DJB officials, particularly those responsible for transmission and distribution of water, the confidential note stated that at least 210 MGD (million gallons of water per day) was unaccounted for and did not reach the consumers because of leakages and transmission losses. Despite the much-claimed shortfall in raw water from Haryana, the DJB on an average this summer has been treating and supplying 670 MGD. "Loss of water in the Capital is to the tune of 30 per cent," the note said.

"It is a pity particularly at a time when the Delhi Government has been spending crores on water conservation and has launched a major public awareness campaign for saving every drop of water. The report only indicates the apathy and criminal negligence of our officials towards wastage of precious water," conceded a top DJB official.

Referring to the Bureau of Indian Standards (IS1172), the official said for a population of 1.4 crores including commercial and industrial consumptions, the Capital required about 600 MGD. Given that the DJB this summer has been treating 670 MGD on an average, it means that the Capital is having surplus water. If the extraction of ground water by large number of tube wells were taken into account, the amount of water available for Delhiites touched 800 MGD, officials said. It is believed that the confidential report revealed that the demand of water in Delhi was far less than supply and thus it is learnt to have pointed towards the massive wastage of water during transmission and inequitable distribution of water. "It is an artificial crisis created by us. It is a crisis of not adopting better practices for conservation and management of water," the report revealed.

However, the DJB officially said that in the past five years they have been able to reduce the quantity of unaccounted water from a high 45 per cent to 30 per cent. "No doubt, we have a long way to go, but in the last few years, we have intensified our efforts to plug the loopholes," he said. Without naming anyone, the official alleged that local politicians were protecting the residents of unauthorised colonies who steal water from the supply lines. "If this is stopped, the water crisis in a large number of areas including South Delhi would come to an end automatically. But we are not able to take any action against these people," the official said.

Adding to the scarcity is the poor and unscientific water distribution network, which has resulted in inequitable supply. While areas of Lutyens' Delhi, Delhi Cantonment and few posh colonies were receiving surplus water, those in the rural areas and outskirts had far less or bare minimum. "This has been known to the DJB officials for more than six years now, but so far no step has been taken to mitigate the anomaly in the distribution network," the official said. "There are certain vested interests among the officials and the politicians who want this crisis to continue because a strong lobby here is looking for the privatisation of DJB," the official said.

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