HYDERABAD: The Centre has given its nod to a Rs. 150-crore underground sewerage network plan for old city under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission. Only 65 per cent of the old city has closed sewerage network coverage. No wonder, the new project includes upsizing of the existing network and laying of new underground sewerage pipelines for a length of 148 km! The plan was cleared at a high-level meeting in New Delhi on Monday with HWMSSB Managing Director K.S. Jawahar Reddy briefing Central officials on the need for an excusive project for the old city.

Colossal task

HMWSSB officials plan to call for tenders in April for the colossal task of laying pipelines in the 20 sq. km long Zone I of old city -- Charminar and surrounding areas. While 14 sq. km of it has underground drainage network, open nalas serve the remaining six sq. km. "It is expected to transfer 25,000 household connections dependent on open nalas into the underground sewerage network," he informed. He said the green signal for the project only indicated at the much-neglected sewerage system finally being accorded high importance by the Government.

With thirty-five per cent cost of the three-year project to be funded by the Centre under JNURM, the rest will be borne by the State Government and HMWSSB. This was a part of the ambitious Rs. 2,000-crore project for revamp and renovation of the sewerage network of the entire city. "We cannot execute the underground sewerage pipeline works that fast as levels and depths where they are being laid have to be maintained consistently all through," he said, explaining the three-year gestation period of the project.

Laying of drinking water pipelines mandates digging to a depth of one metre while sewerage pipelines need to be necessarily laid at a depth of three metres, making the process all the more difficult.

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