The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : SCB’s Angadipet project stalled

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jun 25, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

SCB’s Angadipet project stalled

HMWSSB supplies 27 lakh gallons against required 50 lakh
The project will bring an additional 15 lakh gallons

HYDERABAD: Citizens of the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) will have to wait for a longer time for a regular drinking water supply. In fact, they should pray for more rain as the much vaunted Angadipet project will not be ready for another six months at least.

The project, a joint venture between Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply & Sewerage Board (HMWSSB), Military Engineering Services and SCB has been hit with roadblocks, literally. It was to function from April itself but work on pipelines was held up in the past few months.

Angadipet reservoir connection to Bowenpally and Gun Rock tapping stations is crucial for SCB since drinking water is a scarce commodity in many areas. HMWSSB supplies about 27 lakh gallons a day when SCB needs 50 lakh gallons.

Rs. 6.6 crore-project

The Rs. 6.6 crore-project with pipelines to be laid across 11 km is expected to bring an extra 15 lakh gallons of water a day and once the old pipelines too are repaired, people living in civilian colonies were promised ample water supply maybe even daily as the supply would be 45 lakh gallons a day.

Work at three key phases got stalled because of the delay in getting requisite permits from the Roads & Buildings Department and Railways for laying pipelines in their respective stretches. A key pipeline has to cross the Moula Ali bypass railway line between Greenfield Colony and Alwal.

Another important digging has to be done for laying pipelines on the Tirumalgiri and Military Dairy Farm road stretch. The R&B Department has demanded a stiff Rs. 48 lakh as compensation for cutting the cement road which has reportedly put HMWSSB, the project implementing agency, in a fix as this was not considered in the original budget.

SCB in dark?

And so far the SCB is in the dark on these matters. “We have not been told about any problem regarding delay in getting permissions from other departments. We have already paid up to Rs. 4 crore together with the Military Engineering Services (MES),” says SCB Chief Executive Officer V. Premchand.

Finalisation of tax related issues in the pipelines purchase also resulted in some delay. However, SCB Water Works Superintendent Chandra Prakash assures that it was sorted out. “A major part of the project work has been completed except for these two stretches,” he says.

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