The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Plan drawn up to replace water pipes in old areas

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Mar 29, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Plan drawn up to replace water pipes in old areas

Swathi Shivanand

BWSSB sets aside Rs. 200 crore for the purpose
Sewage lines in some areas were laid 70 years ago

BANGALORE: After facing water shortage and overflowing drains for years, slums and old areas of the city are expected to undergo some rectification following the decision of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to set aside Rs. 200 crore, which is expected to bring relief to the residents of these areas.

The BWSSB on Friday passed its budget for 2008-2009, and approved the “action plan” for overhaul of water and sewage lines in the core areas of the city.

“For the first time, we have chalked out a detailed plan of Rs. 200 crore on replacing water pipes and sewage lines. We will focus specifically on vulnerable areas such slums in low-lying areas and old areas such as Chamarajpet and Commercial Street, where our sewage lines were laid some 70 years ago,” G. Latha Krishna Rao, BWSSB chairperson told The Hindu.

Revenue

The water board expects to generate about Rs. 500 crore from water supply this year. Since most of its revenue is spent on the huge energy costs it incurs for pumping water from Cauvery in four stages, this year the water board has put aside Rs.218 crore as payment for its power usage.

The rest will be used for action plan, according to Ms. Rao.

Waste water reuse

With the BWSSB being the first and the only government agency to have received approval for recycling water for potable purposes under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), this will be one of the main projects the water board will concentrate on this year, Ms. Rao said.

Funds

“This year, we will mostly focus on acquiring land for the project and calling for bids for various works,” she said. While 50 per cent of the funds will come from the Centre and State, BWSSB will have to pitch in the rest.

“We will be getting some funds from the Mega City scheme for this project,” she said.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka