Depletion of groundwater-levels in the southern suburbs has alarmed local body administrators who are now looking for supplementary resources to bridge the gap between demand and supply this summer.
Already, residents are alleging that the current position is due to the failure of the authorities to implement projects meant to rejuvenate groundwater.
Residents of Mullai Nagar in west Tambaram told The Hindu that they get drinking water only once in 7-10 days. Similar is the case in adjoining Chitlapakkam Town Panchayat where water supply is now extinct. Localities like Thirumagal Nagar have been facing an acute water scarcity. The local body has not taken any initiative to curb this, says V. Babu, a senior resident of Thirumagal Nagar.
“With the onset of summer, they should have arranged for water supply through lorries. The neighbouring Sembakkam municipality manages to get daily water supply,” he said.
Tambaram Municipality officials, while acknowledging groundwater depletion, said they have been supplementing the deficiency by augmenting additional borewells which enhanced supply by 20 lakh litres per day. The municipality requires 125 litres per capita daily (lpcd) and the major source is Palar river bed, which supplies about 85 lpcd, they said. The rest is being managed locally, they added.
Pallavaram municipality has written to Metrowater for additional water supply and it has been decided dig bore wells in Putheri, Moovarasanpet, Keelkattalai and Sembakkam lake beds to supplement the requirement. Presently, the municipality gets 23 lpcd as against the 55 lpcd required.
S. Lakshmanan, a rain-water harvesting expert, said the average groundwater level is now in the range of 300 to 500 feet in many parts of the southern suburbs. More attention should be given to rejuvenate the groundwater and steps should be taken to fill the lakes of Tambaram and Alandur taluks with rain water, he said.
