With rain having failed in October and no rain so far in November, the city is staring at the possibility of a drinking water shortage in the coming months.
With this in mind, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) held a special council meeting, along with Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) officials, to discuss the plan of action for the coming months.
Officials announced that the 7,930 borewells drilled by the BBMP in core areas, city municipal council (CMC) and town municipal council (TMC) areas will be taken over by the BWSSB for repair and maintenance.
The BBMP will continue to operate borewells in the 110 villages added to its limits after 2007. “In these villages, the BBMP will maintain and repair borewells. Jetting machines and desilting machines will also be provided by the BBMP,” BBMP Commissioner Manjunath Prasad said.
BWSSB chairman Tushar Girinath promised that water would flow to all 110 villages without piped connections within 24 months. “At least 75 per cent of the project to supply water to these villages will be complete by 2018,” he added.
Following calls for more accountability, it was decided that executive engineers of BWSSB will convene a meeting every month, in which all councillors will be present, to address problems in each ward.
‘Why look only to Cauvery?’
After several councillors complained about their wards not receiving Cauvery water, one said, “Why is there so much emphasis on water being supplied from a river 145 km away from the city?”
The Arkavathi and Vrishabhavathi rivers, if rejuvenated, could provide drinking water to Bengaluru, but for that ‘decision-makers need to have the vision that Sir Visvesvaraya had shown a hundred years ago’.
With this in mind, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) held a special council meeting, along with Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) officials, to discuss the plan of action for the coming months.
Officials announced that the 7,930 borewells drilled by the BBMP in core areas, city municipal council (CMC) and town municipal council (TMC) areas will be taken over by the BWSSB for repair and maintenance.
The BBMP will continue to operate borewells in the 110 villages added to its limits after 2007. “In these villages, the BBMP will maintain and repair borewells. Jetting machines and desilting machines will also be provided by the BBMP,” BBMP Commissioner Manjunath Prasad said.
BWSSB chairman Tushar Girinath promised that water would flow to all 110 villages without piped connections within 24 months. “At least 75 per cent of the project to supply water to these villages will be complete by 2018,” he added.
Following calls for more accountability, it was decided that executive engineers of BWSSB will convene a meeting every month, in which all councillors will be present, to address problems in each ward.
‘Why look only to Cauvery?’
After several councillors complained about their wards not receiving Cauvery water, one said, “Why is there so much emphasis on water being supplied from a river 145 km away from the city?”
The Arkavathi and Vrishabhavathi rivers, if rejuvenated, could provide drinking water to Bengaluru, but for that ‘decision-makers need to have the vision that Sir Visvesvaraya had shown a hundred years ago’.