Tenders have finally been invited for the much-awaited Hale Unduwadi drinking water project, which is expected to meet the fast growing drinking water requirements of a rapidly expanding Mysuru city and its surrounding areas.
The first phase of the project, which is estimated to cost ₹210.5 crore, will draw 150 million litres per day (MLD) from the Cauvery at Hale Unduwadi near KRS reservoir to supply piped water to the burgeoning western parts of the city and 92 villages.
The 150 MLD from the Hale Unduwadi project will be in addition to the260-265 MLD Mysuru city was already receiving from Belagola, Hongalli, Kabini and Melapura.
Under the proposed project, raw water will be drawn from the KRS backwaters at Hale Unduwadi through a jackwell. The place identified for the project allows water to be drawn even when the reservoir level dips below 70 feet and reaches dead storage.
The water thus drawn is pumped to a treatment plant at Beechanakuppe situated at a distance of 4 km south of the jackwell. The treated water will first be pumped to the Master Balancing Reservoir (MBR) at Vijayanagar in the city and the High Level Reservoir (HLR) at Yadavgiri before it is supplied to different parts of the city.
The call for tender by Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board (KUWSDB) for the project marks a milestone as it comes about seven long years after it was conceived and after revision of the Detailed Project Report (DPR). One of the main reasons for the delay was the acquisition of about 100 acres of land identified for the water treatment plant at Beechanakuppe by the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) for an industrial project.
However, the land was subsequently de-reserved and entrusted to the KUWSDB after Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) and Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) raised a stink over it.
Pre-qualified contractors were invited for the bid, which opened earlier this month. The tender, which is scheduled to end on December 16, is expected to be opened on December 19. KUWSDB officials said the project is likely to kick off early in 2021. The successful bidder will have to complete the project in 30 months, the officials added.
Once implemented, the water from the project will be supplied to the western parts of the city including Vijaynagar, many areas coming under MUDA and 92 villages on the outskirts of Mysuru, most of which fall under Chamundeshwari Assembly constituency, under the Rural Water Scheme.
Phase 2 of the Hale Unduwadi project, which envisages another 150 MLD, is expected to be taken up later.
