TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: With the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) set to review its on-going projects in Goa, the JICA-Project Cell in the State under the PWD is eyeing to Phase II under Non Revenue Water (NRW) Management and Control project next year and further the co-operation extended to Goa.
The NRW project under Mission JICA for Goa which, was for a three-year period ends in March 2014. Project Director for JICA under the PWD Anand Wachasundar said, “A review of the on-going NRW project is scheduled between November 17 and 26 after a Mission JICA team visits the State.”
Wachasundar said that during the last three years, JICA under the PWD has made huge strides in pilot projects undertaken for management and control of Non Revenue Water.
“In the first phase the concentration was on capacity building and training of personnel to identify problem areas under NRW,” he said. In this phase, the NRW project went a step further to test the skills and technology and accordingly initiative undertaken has reduced losses from NRW by 15 per cent from 45 per cent.
The project director when contacted by Herald said that a detailed report would be submitted to Mission JICA when its team arrives in the State next week enlisting more projects under NRW as part of Phase II.
“We are hoping that they agree to further the co-operation extended to Goa during the last three years for NRW Management and Control,” Wachasundar said.
Projects envisaged under Phase II includes institutionalization of NRW management and control activities, creating dedicated NRW Plan of long term measures for implementation, targets for NRW reduction, improvement of measurement systems through flow meters, water audit, judicial empowerment.
The project cell in Goa has already initiated measures for accurate water audit through procurement of water meters for as many as 25,000 households in the first round. The new meters will be installed with automatic or remote reading facilities with the remaining households numbering a lakh would be Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) compatible.
The new meters will have accuracy of reading flow meters to the closest of 2 per cent and thereby ensure accurate billing and revenue generation for the State.
REVENUE FROM ROAD DIGGING WORKS: New guidelines laid down by the government for granting permissions to private agencies for digging roads for utility services is likely to bring in huge revenue for the PWD.
Principal Chief Engineer J S Rego said, “There are a large number of applications which have come to the PWD for grant of NOC for road digging for laying of utility service lines.”
This, he said, would generate more revenue for the PWD in comparison to the previous years.
Presently, an NOC granted for road digging to a private cellular company from Karaswadda, Mapusa to Usgao ~a 20 kms stretch, will fetch the PWD amount of Rs 40 crore.
The money received would be spent towards resurfacing of the roads.
Meanwhile, the PWD has begun the resurfacing of roads all over the State.
While Rego said that the target is to complete the same before December end, the same is likely to extend up to March as 6 to 7 contractors have rejected works tendered.
