Four-laning of Paithan road push 80 pc citizens to live without water

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

The taps in the majority of areas of the city got dried on Thursday due to the damage to the air valve affixed on the 1200 mm size main pipeline supplying water to the city on Wednesday evening. The disturbance in the rotational water supply schedule has evoked anger among the citizens.

The task of repairing by the civic officials continued till the wee hours of Thursday. Later on, the water supply got restored at 4 am. Meanwhile, the water supply section officials said that 80 per cent of areas of the city would be getting water in their taps late by one day.

It may be noted that the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is widening the Paithan to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar road into a four-lane. While the work was underway, the JCB deployed at the site dashed the air valve of the 1200 mm size pipeline near Dhorking pumphouse on Wednesday at 7 pm. The fountains of height 20-25 feet were seen emerging from the valve. Acting on the information, the civic officials immediately stopped the lifting of water from Jayakwadi Dam and then emptied the pipeline and formed trenches around the pipeline through JCB to undertake the repairing works. The work of replacing the new air valve and repairing the damage got completed at 1.30 am. Then the lifting of water started and the elevated storage reservoir (ESR) at Cidco N-5 Sector started receiving water at 4 am. It took two hours to fill the ESR up to the brim.

It may be noted that the civic officials started supplying water to the areas which had not received on Wednesday from 8 am and the task continued till 6 pm. After fulfilling the backlog, the water supply to the areas which to receive water on Thursday got started. However, the ESRs were taking a couple of hours to fill up. Hence the remaining phases of water supply to the areas on Thursday will now be given tomorrow, it is learnt.

Postponed for one day

The civic officials tried their best to supply water to areas which were due to receive it on Thursday. The remaining areas will now be getting water tomorrow. Meanwhile, the citizens were forced to take water from tankers who had also increased the charges from Rs 500 to Rs 700 to encash the situation.