Even as residents here are reeling under hot weather conditions, drinking water scarcity is looming large in various parts of the town.
R. Gurunathan of Muniyasamypuram said here on Thursday that water supply had become so erratic that they were getting it once in eight days. Had the fourth drinking water pipeline project, aimed at supplying water to over three lakh people, been completed, the residents would not have faced water crisis, he said.
Residents of Bryant Nagar, Chidambara Nagar, Bucklepuram and Anna Nagar were also receiving water once in eight days, said M.S. Muthu, district secretary, Democratic Youth Federation of India, Thoothukudi. Many wait with pots for hours together outside the pumping station on Palayamkottai Road to get water. The chore of waiting to get water affects office-goers. Many have no alternative but to buy 25 litre water cans. Since not all can afford to buy water, the residents want the corporation authorities to take measures to ensure water supply at regular intervals during summer.
“The situation is even worse in localities near Fathima Nagar where people get water once in 12 days,” MM. Balasubramanian, councillor of 46th ward, said. He said that problems of leakage from underground pipelines were not attended to. One such leakage was detected in the second street of Muniyasamypuram a week ago, but it was not attended to by the corporation authorities. In the recent past, leakages were detected at three locations but were plugged, he said.
A. Lakshmanan, Executive Engineer, said that owing to maintenance work undertaken by the Public Works Department in the shutters of Papanasam dam last week, normal flow of water through Vallanad water headwork station from where water was supplied to residential localities in Thoothukudi got affected. However, the work had been completed and water would be supplied once in five days, he said.
On delay in implementing the fourth water pipeline project, he said that they were awaiting approval from the National Highways Authority of India for laying a pipeline for two kilometres.
