HYDERABAD: In an initiative aimed at ensuring safe drinking water in low-income and densely populated neighbourhoods, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) has planned an extensive third-party water quality monitoring programme across the CURE region, covering Greater Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Malkajgiri municipal corporations.
The year-long programme will focus on service reservoirs and urban slum areas, where contamination risks remain high due to ageing pipelines, leakages, sanitation issues and dense habitation. The initiative is intended to ensure that potable water supplied through service reservoirs meets prescribed public health and safety standards.
The Water Board plans to undertake scientific assessment of drinking water quality through residual chlorine (RC) testing, bacteriological examination, physicochemical analysis, sanitary surveys of reservoirs, community mobilisation and awareness campaigns. The work will be executed through qualified sample collectors, trained analysts and NABL-accredited laboratories under a third-party monitoring system.
Sources said nearly 4.32 lakh water samples would be tested over one year. The largest component involves RC testing using the DPO method, with around 36,000 samples proposed every month. Officials said the large-scale testing would help identify vulnerable areas where chlorination levels fall below permissible standards. The estimated expenditure for RC testing alone is around Rs 86.40 lakh.
The programme also includes advanced bacteriological screening to detect contamination indicators such as Total Coliform, Thermotolerant (Faecal) Coliform and E. coli bacteria. About 19,200 samples are proposed to be tested annually under this component at an estimated cost exceeding Rs 46.06 lakh. Officials said such monitoring is particularly important in slum pockets and low-lying areas vulnerable to sewage ingress during leakages and monsoon flooding.
Apart from microbial contamination, the programme will also assess physicochemical parameters including pH, turbidity, colour, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS), odour, alkalinity, hardness, chlorides, nitrates and nitrites. Around 3,000 samples are proposed for annual laboratory analysis under this component at an estimated cost of Rs 10.50 lakh.
Recognising that contamination risks often originate at storage points, the HMWSSB also plans to conduct 180 sanitary inspections of reservoirs annually to assess cleanliness, structural conditions and possible contamination sources. The initiative will additionally include public awareness campaigns and focus group discussions to educate residents on safe water storage, hygiene practices and reporting contamination complaints.
