THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Amid the coronavirus scare, the district is facing another crisis -- water shortage. The Vamanapuram river, a major source of potable water for the Attingal and Varkala municipalities, has been found to have lower water levels. Although the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) had raised the height of a check dam across the Vamanapuram river at Poovanpara, they’re unsure about the availability of water till March-end.
With rising mercury levels, the water level in the check dam has also begun to decrease. Also, unlike the Karamana river which has a dam at Peppara, the Vamanapuram river has only check dams in the areas where the KWA pumps water to its treatment plants, making it more difficult to store water. The Vamanapuram is also the lone river in the district which does not have any dams or regulators as a respite when drought-like situations arise.
“In the Aruvikkara division of KWA, places such as Panavoor, Pullampara, Kallara and Palode will face a water crisis if there are no summer showers. Till now, no crisis has been reported in these areas but if summer intensifies, the water level will dip and it will be difficult to sustain supply in April,” said Noushad A, executive engineer, head works division, Aruvikkara.
However, several schemes are in the pipeline.
A Rs 16-crore project has been sanctioned by the state government for supplying water to areas such as Anad, Kurupuzha and Palode. The authorities have said that tenders will be called for the project next month. They added that another project for supplying water to Pulimath, Karavaram and Nagaroor panchayats is in the pipeline.
Meantime, the authorities highlighted that Attingal municipality has begun to feel the effects of lower water levels. “We have created two temporary bunds in Karette and Attingal to deal with the situation. Water consumption has also increased owing to the summer and a few areas have started drying up,” said Byju V, executive engineer, KWA.
Officials of KWA said the only way to ensure water for the schemes is by constructing weirs across the river. The authorities also added that a four-metre-wide regulator-cum-bridge has been proposed at Arattukadavu which has to be constructed by the Irrigation Department. If this regulator is not constructed, it will affect the schemes that have been planned for the summer.