Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Drainage division to get additional equipment

G. Mahadevan

Tender floated for purchase of new machines

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The drainage division of the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) will soon get additional equipment to tackle the clogging of sewerage lines in the city.

The division will get a vehicle-mounted ‘jetting machine’ worth Rs.10 lakh and two ‘bucket cleaning’ machines worth Rs.5 lakh a piece in the coming months.

According to KWA officials, a tender had already been floated for the purchase of these machines; the last date for participating in the tender would be July 15. Once the quotations were finalised, it would take another three months for the actual delivery of the machines. The KWA already has two bucket cleaning machines and one jetting machine. These proved inadequate to tackle the widespread clogging of sewerage lines in the city.

It was in November last that the executive engineer of the drainage division wrote to the KWA top brass (letter number SD/DB2.618/06 dated November 24) asking for additional equipment to de-clog the sewerage lines. The official pointed out then that the lines needed to be de-clogged before the monsoon sets in. The KWA top brass, however, paid scant attention to such requests.

According to KWA engineers, the sanction to purchase additional cleaning equipment, though welcome, does not meet the actual requirements of the drainage division. “Now the division is fully dependent on 30-odd contract labourers and the existing cleaning equipment to keep the city’s sewerage network functioning. This may not continue for long as the money paid to these labourers is a pittance. The number of lines to be cleaned is also on the rise. The only alternative is to go in for more cleaning machines, particularly those that can be taken inside small, winding lanes and by-lanes,” a KWA engineer said here.

The city’s sewerage network is due for a major overhaul under the JNNURM scheme. The overhaul involves laying of additional drainage lines, introduction of the sewerage to more areas and construction of a sewage treatment plant at Muttathara.

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