HYDERABAD: Residents of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) area are in for another tough summer with water shortage likely to continue this year too.

Water scarcity, partially due to a faulty distribution system, has been a permanent agony to residents with the SCB and the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board failing to ensure a steady supply.

Water figures

While the requirement of SCB is 50 lakh gallons per day (lgpd), HMWSSB's agreed supply is 37 lgpd. The actual supply is again lower, hovering between 25 lgpd and 30 lgpd. According to SCB's water superintendent Chandra Prakash, 30 lgpd would have been sufficient given the Cantonment's estimated population of 30 lakhs, "if it is supplied properly." Areas like Trimurthi Colony near Mahendra Hills, Ravi Colony and Surya Colony in Trimulgherry and the R&D Defence Colony near Vikrampuri are just a few of those facing acute water shortage. The supply here ranges from once three days to once in five days.

There are a few like Wing Commander (Retd.) K.N. Rao, who now pin their hopes on the new pipelines being laid. "For the last five years, we had to buy water from tankers. Now the new pipes could change the scene. They tested some of these lines on Ugadi Day, after which water came on Thursday too. As of now, the supply is once in three days," he said.

"A proposal to bring 10 lgpd Krishna water with the Rs.2.7 crore Angadipet pipeline project has been sent to the Defence Estate headquarters at Pune for financial approval. It will take at least one year for that project," Mr. Prakash said.

MoU delay

As for the delayed signing of an MoU between SCB and HMWSSB for the latter to take over operations and maintain water distribution, a meeting held on Thursday too is learnt to have ended without a final decision. The pace for laying the 11km water pipelines too has been sluggish.

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