Hyderabad Water Board plans reverse pumping to maintain supply
HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) is drawing up alternative arrangements to maintain drinking water supply across the city amid inadequate rainfall and limited stocks in reservoirs.
The Water Board plans to use reverse pumping to divert Krishna water to areas currently served by Godavari supplies and Godavari water towards areas dependent on Singur and Manjeera.
It also expects to receive another 20 million gallons per day (MGD) from Mission Bhagiratha soon. A 1,000 mm-diameter pipeline will be laid for 120 metres at Ghanpur as part of the arrangements.
Singur reserves may last another 80 days
Water management has become critical in Hyderabad as adequate rainfall has not been recorded due to the El Nino effect, according to the source report. Reservoirs too do not have the expected volume of water.
Recent rains have left Singur reservoir with water sufficient for another 80 days. If there are no further rains, supplies from Singur to Hyderabad could stop after that period, prompting the Water Board to prepare alternative measures.
The board has drawn up plans to use reverse pumping to divert Krishna and Godavari water to more areas.
Board supplies 576.55 million gallons every day
The Water Board supplies drinking water across the Core Urban Region (CURE). Water is supplied on alternate days within the erstwhile Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits and once every two or three days in areas outside the erstwhile GHMC limits.
For the city’s drinking water requirements, the board draws water from distant sources, including the Krishna and Godavari systems, Singur, Manjeera and the twin reservoirs.
A total of 576.55 million gallons of water is supplied to Hyderabad every day.
Areas served by Krishna and Godavari sources are receiving adequate water on alternate days, while areas dependent on Singur and Manjeera are facing disruptions.
The Water Board is therefore taking steps to divert Krishna and Godavari water to localities currently dependent on Singur and Manjeera supplies through reverse pumping.
