Water projects still stuck in the pipeline

KOCHI: Strikes and agitation demanding drinking water seems to have become a daily affair in Chellanam Panchayat.With various pending projects, the coastal panchayat has been reeling under acute water shortage for years now.Here are the projects and packages that failed to takeoff: Maradu Water Treatment Plant Project The Rs 201-crore project under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) promises to end the problems of Chellanam Panchayat once and for all.The proposal for the project has been in the pipeline for more than a decade nowPipeline Funded by the World Bank The World Bank funded water pipeline laid in the panchayat has proved useless.For years now, the pipelines have carried no water.Also, it has been almost 25 years since the land for a water tank in the area was identified under the ‘World Bank’ project.However, the actual work for the tank kick-started only four months back.Dry Public Water TapsThe public taps in Chellanam are no exception.Some wards have as many as 17 public taps closely located.While many of them have turned dysfunctional through the years, the ones that are functional often draw salt water.Dysfunctional Desalination Plant Desalination plants have made constant presence in the list of water solutions proposed by the experts.However, the low cost state of the art desalination plant in the area, which can purify water at the rate of 2000 litres an hour, has been gathering dust.Government Sponsored Water Tanker LorriesAs of now, Kerala Water Authority’s (KWA) water tanker lorries and mini lorries are the only respite for the residents of Chellanam.However, constant delays in their arrival coupled with low quantity of water they carry have been a constant headache for the residents.Besides, the requests to increase the frequency of their trips fell on deaf ears.Meanwhile, KWA said that the ever increasing city population is the root of the water crisis.“The water available to us is limited, while the population and the net consumption within the main city has been on the rise.The water reaches areas like Chellanam only after passing through Kochi city.Therefore, the quantity of water consumed by the city leads to a constant shortage in areas like Chellanam,” said G Vanaja, superintendent engineer, PH Circle Kochi, KWA.Owing to the current situation, Chellanam Panchayat members are set to hold an indefinite relay fast outside the office of the KWA Superintendent Engineer.It will start today