Taking a serious note of the reports of water levels in rivers, authorities have embarked on a contingency plan to tackle the impending drought situation.
A recent meeting of the District Development Council, convened by District Collector P.K. Sudheer Babu, directed stakeholder agencies, including the Kerala Water Authority (KWA), to take urgent steps to avoid disruptions in the distribution of drinking water in the coming months.
Further, a decision with regard to immediate completion of works on the upcoming drinking water projects was made at the meeting.
The meeting assumes significance in the wake of reports about the high-lying areas in the eastern side already reeling under severe water shortage with the water level in the Manimalayar river already hitting the nadir.
The phenomenon, in turn, also has a significant impact on the groundwater level of the region. As per estimates, around four lakh people in panchayats from Mundakkayam to Chirakkadavu are dependent on the waterbody for their drinking water needs.
The situation in the western parts, including Kumarakom, is not rosy either, where access to clean drinking water has always been a problem.
Food security
According to sources, the shortage of water will also have serious consequences for commercial agriculture and in turn food security.
Commenting on the issue, KWA officials said the water level at the intake points of various waterbodies, which reported a sharp fall post-floods, returned to normality in a matter months and is sufficient to meet the district’s requirements for the time being.
However, the department expects the situation to deteriorate with the rise in temperature and hence has joined hands with the Irrigation Department to construct bunds at all major points of these rivers to conserve water and check incursion of saline water.
The maintenance works on our network are progressing on a war footing while vending points have been activated to ensure water for the local bodies based on their requirement.
Further, the check to identify unauthorised consumption has been intensified and stern action will be initiated against the violators, said Anitha, Superintending engineer, KWA Kottayam.
