Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore   

Details of water connections sought from Kurichi Municipality

Special Correspondent

Right to Information Act invoked; a resident questions new initiative to provide more connections; what action has been taken against illegal connections?

COIMBATORE: Kurichi Municipality's move to release new drinking water connections has run into resistance, with people describing it an ill-conceived move when there is not enough Siruvani water to meet the demand from the existing connections.

One of the residents has even sought details such as number of existing connections under the Right to Information Act and questioned the move of the local body to release more.

The situation brings into sharp focus the plight of the suburbs that are dependent on the Siruvani scheme. Even if water overflows in the Siruvani Dam, it is of no benefit to the suburbs such as Kurichi, Kuniamuthur, Kavundampalayam, Vadavalli and Veerakeralam.

These areas together get a supply of less than 10 million litres a day (mld), out of the 101 mld that can be drawn for Coimbatore Corporation and the local bodies south and west of the city.

The scheme's envisaged supply to the Corporation is 87 mld. Though there is no official confirmation whether the city gets this supply now, it is said to be more than 75 mld and water is supplied to the people on alternate days. But, the supply in Kurichi is only once in eight to 10 days, allege residents.

The municipality is unable to meet the demand from a rising population with a meagre allocation.

T. Sukhindran of Mudaliar Street in Konavaikanpalayam has written a letter to the Executive Officer of the municipality, seeking details under the Right to Information Act.

He has asked for the quantum of supply in the municipal limits, the number of new connections planned and how the local body will procure more water to meet the rise in demand.

Mr. Sukhindran has also asked how the municipality can supply water to additional connections when the present supply itself is only once in 10 or 12 days.

Besides asking whether the deposit is Rs.3,000 for domestic and Rs.5000 for non-domestic connections as in Tirupur, he also sought facts with regard to reports of illegal water connections and how many of them have been disconnected and action initiated.

Referring to the advertisement released in a newspaper on July 27, announcing the release of connections, the Kovai Makkal Sakthi Sangham has warned that the release of more connections will worsen the situation and supply can be made only once in 15 or 20 days. At present, water is supplied only for two hours and that too once in eight or ten days, it has said in a memorandum to the District Collector, Neeraj Mittal.

It has also pointed out that the municipality did not have enough overhead tanks to store water needed for these many connections. The tank near Saradha Mill Road could hold only six lakh litres and the other near Mettur has a capacity of seven lakh litres.

Though release of more connections should make good news, there is no point in going ahead with it without having the required infrastructure in place. The Sangham appealed for connecting the city's water lines with those of the municipality near Ramanathapuram (Nanjundapuram) and Athupalam for a temporary solution to overcome water scarcity.

The new connections can be released after this measure is taken and more overhead tanks provided.

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