HYDERABAD: To meet the future drinking water needs of Greater Hyderabad, a fourth pipeline would be laid at an estimated cost of Rs 1,400 crore at Sunkisala, near Nagarjunasagar, which will supply drinking water from Krishna river to the State’s capital city.
MAUD Minister KT Rama Rao revealed this during the foundation stone laying ceremony of the Outer Ring Road (ORR) Phase-II drinking water supply scheme at Alkapoor Township in Manikonda on Monday. This project is being taken up with an estimated cost of Rs 687 crore.
Once the new line is laid, the city will receive adequate water supply from Krishna river. “Besides meeting the current drinking water needs, it will also help in meeting the requirements of the city for the next 30 years,” he said.
The Minister also said that in addition to addressing the irrigation needs in the State, the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) will also help in supplying drinking water to Greater Hyderabad.
The Kondapochamma Sagar and Mallannasagar reservoirs also have provision to meet drinking water needs of Hyderabad city, he added.
“Keeping in view the future demand for drinking water, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has proposed a plan to interlink Kondapochamma and Osmansagar (Gandipet) reservoirs so that Gandipet remains full and there is no interruption in drinking water supply to the city. This will ensure drinking water supply to the city at least till 2051,” he said.
“Currently, water is being supplied to Hyderabad from Yellampally (Godavari) and Akkampally (Krishna). But if the water is also supplied through the Kondapochamma reservoir, which is close to Hyderabad, drinking water issues in the city and its vicinity will be addressed permanently.”
ORR Phase-II water supply scheme to benefit over 1.96 L
“As Kondapochamma Sagar is 612 metres above the sea level and Hyderabad 530 metres above the sea level, water can be tapped through gravity and the city will have abundant water for all its future needs,” he added.
The HMWS&SB is currently supplying 600 million gallons of water per day and the demand is expected to increase to 1,000 MGD by 2051.
After the formation of Telangana, the State government sanctioned Rs 6,000 crore to provide drinking water in the areas beyond Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits and within Outer Ring Road limits, following which several projects were taken up to boost drinking water supply in surrounding urban local bodies. The Minister also said that the State government’s schemes, including Mission Bhagiratha and Rythu Bandhu, turned out to be role models for the Central government and as well as several other States as these schemes are being replicated by them.
According to officials, the ORR Phase-II drinking water supply scheme will provide 83,270 additional connections, which will benefit over 1.96 lakh people. Under this project, the water supply infrastructure would the extended by laying inlet, outlet, distribution network and construction of service reservoirs in Rajendranagar, Shamirpet, Medchal, Quthbullapur, Patancheru, Ramchandrapuram and Bollarum mandals. As many as 41 water reservoirs will be constructed with a total capacity of 71.5 ML. The project will provide enhanced water supply and improve the service level benchmarks for existing consumers and coverage of unserved areas, the officials said.