KURNOOL: Kurnool Municipal Corporation (KMC) has started disconnecting drinking water connections of users who have been found wasting the precious commodity.
Significantly, the civic body officials had already warned that those using the precious drinking water being supplied to them for purposes other than human consumption will have their water supply connections cut.
During its drive to check misuse of drinking water, the KMC booked three cases in Prakash Nagar and disconnected their connections. Officials stated that their drive to ensure optimal use of drinking water will continue.
The full capacity of Sunkesula reservoir is 1.2 TMC feet, while the city’s annual water requirement is 1.5 TMC feet. Over 95 per cent of households in the city rely on the municipal corporation for their drinking water. Last year, due to depletion of water in Sunkesula, officials had to draw water from the 4.5-TMC feet capacity Gajuladinne Project, located over 70 km away.
The city’s daily water requirement is between 70 to 75 million litres per day (MLD).
Due to the salinity of borewell water, most residents depend on Tungabhadra water for their daily needs, such as bathing, washing clothes and cooking, in addition to drinking. However, with the municipal authorities continuously supplying drinking water, people have gradually started using this water for cleaning houses, washing vehicles and for other non-essential purposes. Some commercial establishments are also storing drinking water and diverting it for non-consumption uses.
This puts a heavy burden on the civic body, especially during the peak summer of April and May. In view of this, municipal officials began cracking down on misuse of drinking water.
Commissioner S. Ravindra Babu has already warned that initially, connections of those misusing water will be disconnected. Legal cases will be booked against repeat offenders.
“Many households have borewells. But they do not use them for drinking purposes due to high salinity. But they use it for other purposes like washing. However, certain households have started storing the municipal water in overhead tanks, sumps and drums, and using the water for purposes other than drinking,” said R. Krishna, a resident of Raghavendra Nagar.
Previously, water was supplied for two to three hours in most areas. But over time, the supply duration went down to just 30 minutes to an hour. This led to shortage of water for households, particularly in tail-end areas.
Learning from the previous year’s challenges, officials have taken early action this year to ensure that Sunkesula is filled to its full capacity of 1.2 TMC feet, helping the city avoid a water crisis during peak summer.
