The increasing drinking water needs of burgeoning Bangalore has forced the state government to seek additional allocation of water from the Cauvery basin for the city. The government is planning to approach the centre to seek 30 TMC of water from the Cauvery basin, chief minister Jagadish Shettar said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a function to dedicate the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB)’s Cauvery Fourth Stage Second Phase project to Bangaloreans, he promised that the state government would approach the centre to raise the allocation for Bangalore’s drinking water needs to 30 TMC from the present 19 TMC, awarded by the Cauvery Water Tribunal, which will prove inadequate considering the rapid growth of the city in future.
Bangalore has almost reached its full quota of 19 TMC with the inauguration of Cauvery Fourth State Second Phase project which would bring Cauvery water to newly added areas of the BBMP.
The issue of inadequate water for the city was raised by Ananth Kumar, Member of Parliament, at the function.
“Cauvery Fourth Stage Second Phase has successfully been completed and it has made the BWSSB proud. This has been possible, thanks to the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) which has given such a huge loan for completing the project. JICA has helped in many important infrastructure projects and this has been one of the most important ones,” Ananth Kumar said.
Stating that the city’s requirement of water has increased drastically with rapid growth, he said: “The chief minister must go with a delegation to the prime minister Manmohan Singh and ask for 30 TMC as we have already reached the allocated limit of 19 TMC from the Cauvery basin,” he said.
Agreeing to this, Shettar said: “We will go to Delhi along with our team and request the prime minister to help us get more water to the state. It is needed as the city and the state are witnessing brisk growth,” Shettar said.
110 villages deprived of water
While the new areas of the city will now receive water from Cauvery, 110 villages under the BBMP will be deprived of it. “We have given 18 kilometres of area for putting up pipelines for this project. But we will not be benefited by it. We want BWSSB minister Suresh Kumar to look into the matter and ensure that we get water,” M Krishnappa, MLA Bangalore South, said.
Ananth Kumar said: “If the state asks for water from the centre, these 110 villages, which are deprived of water, can be helped.”
Many among these 110 villages are en-route to ground level reservoirs or feeder lines. “We will set up a committee to look into this. We will find a solution for this through the Karnataka Urban Water Supply scheme,” Shettar said.
