GULBARGA: The Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board (KUWSDB) is now planning to abandon the existing Bennethora Water Supply Scheme and retain the old drinking water pipeline from the Bhima.

As per the original proposal of the KUWSDB, the existing pipeline from Saradgi barrage across Bhima river, which is partially meeting the drinking water requirement of the city, was to be abandoned after the completion of the ongoing World Bank-assisted Rs. 45-crore project of laying a new mild steel pipeline from Saradgi barrage to the new filter bed.

Frequent leaks

The existing pipeline from the Bhima has the capacity to pump 6 MGD of water and the decision to install a new pipeline was taken after the existing pipeline burst at different points on a regular basis.

Official sources told The Hindu that the repair and revival of the Bennethora drinking water project was included in the World Bank project and the KUWSDB authorities began removing and re-laying of the existing pipeline at the initial reaches up to 2.5 km.

Since the existing concrete pipeline carrying water from Bennethora river was also likely to burst in future, District in-charge Minister Sharanabasappa Darshanapur had proposed to replace the existing concrete pipeline with mild steel pipeline and directed the KUWSDB to explore the alternatives and prepare the estimates.

As per the estimates prepared for replacing it with mild steel pipeline, the total cost would come to Rs. 10.45 crore. Besides this to ensure continuous supply of water from Bennethora river, a barrage at a cost of Rs. 7.33 crore would have to be constructed.

Sources said the scrap value of the existing concrete pipeline from Bennethora to old filter bed worked out to be around Rs. 4 crore.

Even after deducting the scrap value, the cost of replacement with mild steel pipeline for Bennethora project and constructing a barrage worked out to be uneconomical.

Since retaining of the existing pipeline from Bhima river was economical, a proposal in this regard was made to the KUWSDB, which is actively considering it and a decision is likely at the earliest.

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