We Talk Water - Chennai

Intermittent Water Supply is the reality of Chennai.

Here, is the webinar organized by International Water Association Specialist Group on Intermittent Water Supply.

Webinar: "Using The World Bank Utility of the Future framework for holistic IWS solutions" by Yang Villa, Head of the Philippines, Isle Utilities Asia - Pacific and World Bank Consultant.

URL: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk10

cc: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Water Resources, RD & GR, Chennai Metro Water, BWSSB, Bwssb, Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad Metropolitan Water supply & Sewerage Board, Delhi Jal Board, Ceinsys Tech Limited, Larsen & Toubro ECC, Australian Water Partnership, Global Water Partnership, IWA Young Water Professional Nepal, BWWA, பூவுலகு, Arappor - அறப்போர் இயக்கம், Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), The Times of India, TheNewsMinute

Using the Utility of the Future Framework for holistic IWS solutions - Yang Villa The World Bank Utility of the Future (UOF) assessment and planning framework is a tool for mobilizing and maintaining long-term utility transformation. This ...

We Talk Water - Chennai updated their business hours.

Water Resources Department to take up emergency flood mitigation projects in Chennai’s south

Projects expected to provide much-needed respite to areas such as Semmencheri and Pallikaranai that face flooding every monsoon
The Water Resources Department (WRD) will take up projects worth ₹184.22 crore in southern parts of the city around Pallikaranai marshland to construct new channels and also bridge gaps between waterbodies and the marshland.

These projects would be implemented as emergency works to provide the much-needed respite to areas such as Semmencheri and Pallikaranai that face the threat of flooding every monsoon. Officials of the WRD said several areas remained under sheets of water during the Northeast monsoon.

To read: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk9

Tamil Nadu, Netherlands to sign MoU on agritech, water management, other sectors

The Tamil Nadu government will soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of The Netherlands encompassing a wide range of industries from agritech to water management to pave the way for closer collaboration on key projects, the ambassador of The Netherlands, Marten van den Berg, told ET on Monday.

To read: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk8

WRD to build small reservoir to enhance city water supply

The Water Resource Department (WRD) is building a small reservoir on the outskirts of the city by increasing the capacity of Kattur and Thatamanji lakes from 58.27 mcft to 350 mcft, at a cost of Rs 62.36 crore.

A senior official in WRD told TNIE that work on the two lakes will likely be completed by August, adding the lakes were being upgraded so that groundwater can be recharged, preventing seawater intrusion and providing water for irrigation.

Another official explained about the need for the small reservoir. He said the city’s reservoirs’ has a capacity of 13.213 tmcft while the demand stood at 20 tmcft and it will increase to 34 tmcft by 2030. To take care of the extra demand, small and medium waterbodies in and around the city would be used as drinking water source. Besides, the WRD has decided to create a few more small reservoirs and enhance the storage capacity of the existing ones.

To read: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk7

24*7 Water Supply pilot in Chennai - Adyar and Kodambakkam

The Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) will implement a round-the-clock drinking water supply scheme in Kodambakkam and Adyar zones on a pilot basis.

The CMWSSB would improve the existing water distribution infrastructure on the lines of the one executed in Puri, Odisha. Under this, water can be directly used from the tap for drinking and cooking.

According to sources, overhead tanks will be built to supply water with uniform pressure. Streets will be divided as metered areas where boundary valves will be sealed and piped network to other areas will be disconnected.

To read more: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk6

Silt in the reservoirs that supply Chennai

The Chembarambakkam reservoir was constructed over a century ago, but proper desilting has never been done. A project was undertaken in 2019 to desilt Chembarambakkam, Red Hills, Poondi, Cholavaram at a cost of approximately INR 36 crore. The project was also expected to bring in additional revenue with the sale of excavated sand. Chembarambakkam alone was expected to generate Rs 191 crore.

The project duration was eight years to desilt the entire lake, which has a storage capacity of 3,645 million cubic feet (mcft). As much as 151.80 lakh cubic metres of silt was to be removed and transported through 25.30 lakh lorry loads. Work orders were sanctioned but the project never really took off

To read: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk5

TN govt examining ₹22,004-crore proposal for Chennai water supply augmentation and flood mitigation - Excerpt from the Policy Note of Water Resources Department, Government of Tamil Nadu

It is very imperative to protect Chennai city from recurrent flooding and drinking water problems. Medium-term and Long-term flood mitigation works are proposed to be taken up to avoid recurring flooding in Chennai city. At present, 6 Reservoirs viz., Cholavaram,
Chembarambakkam, Poondi, Redhills, Kannankottai-Thervaikandigai and Veeranam with a combined capacity of 13 TMC ft. caters the needs of drinking water requirements of Chennai City as against the annual demand of drinking and industrial requirement about 22 TMC ft. at present and which may raise to 32 TMC ft. by 2035 with the projected population growth.

The impact of Climate Change has been rampant on tropical climatic areas causing unprecedented flash floods in many parts of
Chennai, Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu and Thiruvallur Districts. Hence, with an aim to bridge the gap between present water demand and supply rate and also to create a flood resilient urban infrastructure, the project “Chennai City Water Supply Augmentation and Flood Mitigation Resilient to Climate Change” is being formulated.

The objective of the proposal is flood mitigation and rainwater conservation for deficit years in and around Chennai city. The Comprehensive proposal comprises enhancing the rain water storage capacity in the upstream of Chennai city by creation of new storage structures, increasing the storage capacity of existing water bodies, improving the conveyance efficiency and interconnecting the feasible water bodies. The proposal aims to create an additional storage capacity of 20.50 TMC ft. to meet the drinking water requirements of Chennai city and to find possible mitigation measures to a maximum extent for the flood vulnerable areas in and around Chennai City.

The tentative estimated cost is Rs.22,004 crore.

To read the policy note from Water Resources Department: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk4

Greater Chennai Corporation

Understanding reality is the first step in diagnosis and in turn tailoring solutions and strategies to manage the problem at hand.

The basic question of how much sewage is generated per day in Chennai is awaiting answers.

250 million litres of raw sewage let into Chennai rivers daily says the The Times of India article from April 28, 2022.

URL: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk

This article points to an article that channels the same spirit, but from 2017 titled "With 1073 MLD of sewage a day, why wouldn’t Chennai’s water bodies stink?".

URL: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk2

To read more about the report from Arappor - அறப்போர் இயக்கம், a Chennai based anti-graft body , "Why Chennai Stinks", use the below link.

URL: https://tinyurl.com/chennaiwatertalk3 (72 pages)

So, how much sewage is actually generated in Chennai per day ? We are awaiting answers.

cc: Chennai Metro Water

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