Ponda locals not happy with the way pipelines are managed
At the heart of the development that rocked two talukas, locals lament that that if half the amount of attention, the pipelines received recently, was given to it much earlier, the major disaster, that saw Tiswadi and Ponda not receive water for seven days, could have been averted.
Moreover, what has troubled the locals of Ponda greatly, is the fact that these same pipelines were scheduled to be shifted to another area after the monsoon. These old pipelines located at the earth embankment at Curti, would be shifted soon after the monsoon to other side of the road at a relatively safer place, due to the ongoing widening work of the national highway passing through the area.
The officials add that the old pipelines are still in a good condition but some would be replaced after the monsoon. However, locals have called on the authorities to check on croachments and digging near the main pipeline, which have caused water shortages. They have even alleged that compound and houses have been erected very close to the pipelines and also on them in some areas.
When PWD officials were asked to comment about the encroachment on the pipelines, they said it does cause damage and warned that such work carried out by private parties have led to the pipeline bursting in certain areas. They even referred to accidents that have occurred during work on the highway itself.
They however clarified that the old Cast iron pipeline, DI pipelines supplying water to Tiswadi are in a good condition and that as long as there is no damage, there is no problem.
Bicholim residents complain of irregular water supply
PWD, Bicholim claims that the main pipeline supplying water from Padosem Water Treatment Plant is in a good condition. A PWD official informed that the main pipeline was laid in 2004 when the Padosem water treatment plant was made operational. “Almost the entire main pipeline in Bicholim is new and was installed when the Padosem water treatment plant was installed. These pipes have 50 years of life and in Bicholim they are almost like new,” the official said.
He said there could be some problems with the distributaries at local level but the main pipeline is still in good condition. “There are plans to change the pipeline and increase its capacity from Bicholim bus stand to Mulgao. The present pipeline is 100 CI and we are planning to install a bigger pipeline of 160 PVC on this entire stretch,” he added. According to PWD sources, five extensions in Mulgao and Latambarcem have been sanctioned. “Whenever there is increase in households in a particular area, the panchayat informs us or the residents complain about the low pressure and we replace the pipeline after making the estimates,” he said.
However, residents complained of not getting proper water supply. “There are instances when even in the town areas there is no water even for more than 24 hours. We don’t know whether it is the fault of the PWD, Padosem water treatment plant or the pumping station at Sanquelim. On such occasions when we try to confront the PWD officials, they claim that it is the fault of water treatment plant. We demand that the government resolve this issue by ensuring 24-hour water supply,” demanded Gauri Chodankar from Bicholim.
Salcete pipelines are 30 years old
Age-old pipelines supply water to the eight constituencies in Salcete. These pipelines are supplying water to at least 1 lakh connections and nearly 7 to 8 lakh people are dependent on these water lines.
The PWD officials however caution that there is no need to worry. Locals hope that action is taken before it is too late. Speaking about the conditions of these pipelines, the PWD Executive Engineer of division IX, Cleasby Dias, informed that that they have been continuously replacing the old dated pipelines in the taluka.
“The pipelines in Salcete are 30 years old. They are made of Prestat concrete material and are old now. However, these pipelines haven’t had any chronic problems here in Salcete, “he added. Cleasby added that the lines are being replaced with Ductile Iron pipelines.
Mapusa pipeline only 10 years old?
There appear to be two versions in Mapusa about the condition of its water-supplying pipelines.
PWD officials opine that the water pipelines running through Mapusa are strong and not very old. “We have mostly polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipelines in Mapusa. They are hardly 10 to 15 years old. There is very minimum wastage of water also through these pipes. If good quality pipes are used they are strong and last for around 25 years. Most of the pipelines in Mapusa have been replaced while others are in the process of being changed,” said PWD Assistant Engineer, Subhash Belgaonkar.
While a Mapusa councillor said the water pipeline in Mapusa is almost 35 years old. “I don’t know why the PWD officials are denying that we have old pipelines in Mapusa as some are nearly four decades old. At least 20 MLD of water is being wasted due to the leakages in the pipelines. In my ward itself, I can point out water leakages at several points due to old and worn out pipelines. There is a need to lay new pipeline to save water wastage.” he said.
A local from Mapusa, Gauresh said that PWD in Mapusa has been turning a blind eye to the water wastage, which is taking place at several places and that they are failing to come out with a solution towards the same.
Ten months ago Herald had reported that the PWD replaced two pipes in the village of Salvador-do-Mundo, which were totally rusted and damaged. There was a leakage and hence the PWD managed to identify these pipes that were old and brittle.
Water yet to flow through 5-year-old JICA pipeline in Vasco
Unlike the situation in other talukas, which are crying out for the old pipelines to be replaced with new ones, in Vaso, there is a not so new pipeline which hasn’t been used for the last five years.
Moreover, the PWD water supply at Vasco, the internal water supply pipelines from Vasco area are almost 40 years old and have not been replaced completely since then. Further, the main PSC (concrete) pipeline is around 30 years old and has been never replaced with the new one.
Assistant Engineer, Eknath Paste confirmed the age of the PSC pipeline but added that timely maintenance is done to avoid any incident where the pipeline would burst. When asked why the older internal pipelines from Vasco haven’t been replaced complete, he said that it is not possible to replace it entire at one time. However Eknath added that the proposal to replace internal pipelines with new ones is on the table.
When asked why the five-year-old JICA pipeline has not been made operational, he added that near the Dabolim-Bogmalo junction just near the railway crossing, the main pipeline of JICA runs through the area, which comes under the jurisdiction of South Western Railway. This has further delayed the clearance from SWR’s side, which has resulted in a delay in making the JICA pipeline operational.
He also told that the work to get clearance is under progress and within two months time this pipeline may likely to get operational.
He further added that once the JICA pipeline gets operational, the water will be diverted to new JICA pipeline and the old PSC main pipeline will be discarded.
Further there is a proposal to put up a new PSC pipeline to replace the old one. “Mormugao taluka receives around 80 MLD water-supply on a daily basis. There are two water tanks built in new Vaddem, Mangor area under JICA and once the JICSA pipeline gets operational, the water supply will improve” Paste opined.
Pipelines in Pernem are four decades old
The taluka of Pernem faces a perennial problem of water shortage and irregular supply throughout the year. Even during the monsoons.
However, despite the concerns raised by locals about the water pipeline, which is almost 40 years old , PWD officials have stated that there is no replacement plan for the same.
Locals have complained that the age-old pipelines are damaged and leaks at several places, not only causing wastage of water but in some cases, are the reason why water doesn’t reach some households.
The coastal belt which is located at tail end faces water shortage problem the most. The worst affected areas are that of Morjim, Mandrem, Arambol, Keri, Palyem, Tuem and Corgao. Not only the coastal belt, other villages which are located in hilly areas receive irregular water supply and this problem goes out of control during the summer when the wells dry up.
“The population in Pernem is increasing and there are so many development projects underway. The replacement of the existing pipeline as well as constructing a new water treatment plant is the need of the hour,” said a local resident.
The current water treatment plant (WTP) supplies water to Pernem as well as Mandrem constituency. There is only one WTP in Chandel that supplies 15 MLD to the whole of Pernem.
When contacted the EE of Pernem PWD said that the present water pipeline is in a good condition and that there are no plans of replacing the same.
According to the locals though, currently there is a requirement of at least 9 MLD, taking into consideration the number of commercial complexes, hotels, restaurants, shacks, guest houses, on the Mandrem beach belt and proposed development projects.
There are more than 17,967 tap connections in Pernem taluka from which around 17,549 are domestic and more than 291 are commercial. Around 400 to 500 new connections are released in a year.
Pernem MLA and Deputy Chief Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar said,” A new plant for Pernem constituency and a separate plant for Mandrem constituency have been panned and follow-up work regarding the same is underway. Once the projects are completed, the water issue in Pernem taluka will be solved.
Reporting by Santosh Naik, Samir Umarye, Pratik Parab, Andrea
Fernandes, Asmita Polji and Dhiraj Harmalkar
