Following repeated instances of flooding and inundation in the city during heavy rainfall, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has now set a target to install 5,000 Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) pits in parks and roadside drains to smooth the flow of water and increase the groundwater table.
The civic body has so far installed 1,000 RWH pits in the city and set a target of constructing 5,000 more in another three years across the city. The BBMP is planning to harvest at least two crore litre of rainwater annually.
“According to experts, the city receives 600 mm to 1,000 mm rain annually and most of this rainwater gets wasted flowing into drains. Hence, the BBMP is installing RWH pits in parks and various places in the city which will contribute to the increase in groundwater,” a BBMP officer from the horticulture department said.
“The RWH pits not only raise the underground water table in the city, but also this ingenious method will also ensure adequate water supply to trees with shorter roots in BBMP parks,” he added.
The civic body says that the RWH pits are been installed with the help of various non-government organisations and under the Corporate Social Responsibilities programme scientifically. “We are now digging a 12-foot-deep RWH pit, which includes concrete rings, iron meshes and covering slabs at around the cost of ₹35,000 to ₹40,000,” the officer explained.
BBMP is already started implementing the project in phase by phase manner and last month, in the Basavanagudi assembly constituency, the civic body called a tender for implementing the RWH pits at the cost of ₹8.79 crore.
According to BBMP, there are around four lakh RWH pits across the city, however, the BBMP has no data on how many are in good condition.
