The Tiruchi Corporation is set to commence work on laying the pipelines across the Cauvery river, a crucial phase in the execution of new drinking water augmentation scheme for the city.
Once the pumping mains are laid across the bridge, the corporation would be able to start pumping water from all the three collector wells of the Rs.221.42 crore drinking water supply augmentation scheme. The three collector wells for the new water scheme on the Coleroon river bed at Melur near Srirangam are ready already.
According to corporation officials, work on the construction of a bridge across the river for carrying the pipelines has reached the final stage of completion. “Erection of the pre-case concrete deck slabs will be completed within the next few days after which work will begin on laying the pipelines,” a corporation officer told The Hindu . The new bridge has been constructed parallel to the Cauvery bridge on the Tiruchi-Chennai bypass road. The construction of the bridge was one the critical phases of the project work as the corporation had to complete it during the Mettur closure period.
Official sources say that the pumping mains across the new bridge would be laid within the next 15 to 20 days. Once the work is over, the corporation hopes to connect the mains to the existing drinking water distribution network in Ariyamangalam, Mela Kalkandarkottai, and surrounding areas which are perennially prone to face drinking water shortage.
“By mid-June we hope to complete this work so that daily supply could be provided to these areas which are currently getting water supply on alternate days,” an official said.
Work is also underway on laying pipeline across the railway crossings and national highways in six places. The corporation has gone in for trenchless technology to laying the mains at these places.
On Tuesday, Mayor A.Jaya accompanied by Corporation Commissioner (in-charge) K.R.Selvaraj and other officials inspected the work on the Cauvery river and also at Panchakarai where the pipelines are laid using trenchless technology.
Residents in several newly-added colonies in the city are keenly awaiting the completion of the project, which seeks to ensure equitable distribution of drinking water to all parts of the city. The project financed by Japan International Cooperation Agency, seeks to step up the per capita drinking water supply to 135 litres a day and ensure equitable distribution to all parts of the city. The scheme will tap about 58.60 MLD immediately on completion and 93.26 MLD in the ultimate stage in 2039.
However, it could still take several months for the project to be fully commissioned as the distribution mains of the new project are yet to be fully laid. The project was split into eight major packages and the last two packages for laying distribution mains were the last to be taken up. So far, distribution mains have been laid for a distance of just about 236 km of the total length of about 480 km.
Similarly, work on the construction of 37 new overhead tanks (OHTs) under the scheme is still underway. So far 23 OHTs have been completed, while the remaining is in various stages of construction.
The city currently gets its water supply through 54 OHTs. The additional reservoirs are essential to overcome the short supply faced by residents in certain parts of the city.
