No need to panic, there is enough water in city: BWSSB chief engineer

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: As summer is now here, the fear of water shortage among the public has severely increased. With the dread looming, water tankers are using the opportunity and cashing in on the demand by increasing their prices.

While the BWSSB struggles to supply water across the city during the summers, many water tankers that supply water without owning a proper trade licence or following rules turn rampant.

Each tanker costs about Rs 600 for 14,000 litres of water and Rs 800-1,000 for 7,000 litres of water during the season. The level of ground water in the city decreases by over 20 percent during summers in the city, the effect of which is being felt by various areas like Chamarajpet which house numerous slums that do not have water storage facilities. Authorities along with local MLAs have decided to take on the issue.

“We do annual maintenance of all water tankers with BWSSB. The internal surface of the water tanker is EPI (ethoxylated polyimine)-coated to prevent hazardous chemical reactions between the tank’s metal and the salts that are dissolved in the water. Drinking water is supplied after it has been tested in the RO plant. We have enough water and there are low chances of water shortage in the city. We are supplying water to 51 villages under the BBMP once a week. After the completion of the Cauvery water project, we will supply water to the remaining villages”, BWSSB Engineer-in-Chief B Suresh informed.