BENGALURU: In light of the meteorological department’s forecast of a deficit in the upcoming monsoon, the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is taking steps to raise groundwater levels and reduce dependence on surface water.
“With a view to strengthen the rainwater harvesting (RWH) campaign in the city, the BWSSB has come forward to install RWH systems in the buildings of willing customers,” said the civic body’s chairman Ram Prasath Manohar.
For customers who hesitate to install RWH due to space constraints, a new 3rd Generation technology is being introduced. This will significantly reduce the reliance on Cauvery water and groundwater, Manohar said. The new system has already been implemented at 75 locations. Manohar personally inspected the new RWH system installed in a building in Bhuvaneshwari Nagar. Based on its success, the BWSSB is preparing to replicate this in buildings that have not yet installed RWH systems. “Implementation of this project will discused in the upcoming BWSSB board meeting,” he said.
Many customers are paying a penalty to BWSSB for not installing RWH systems. It collects a revenue of about Rs 3 crore every month in the form of these penalties, Manohar said.
It has been decided to recover the installation cost in phases, equivalent to the monthly penalty currently paid by the customers. Over time, this will not only save customers from paying penalties but also significantly reduce their water bills, said a senior BWSSB official.
What is 3rd Gen RWH system?
It is equipped with an SS316 mesh featuring an anti-choke weave
The streamlined design inside the filter maximises the velocity of the incoming water
Regulatory systems and automatic windows work in tandem to instantly expel waste of any size present in the water, providing pure water