Two trains will carry at least 7.5 million litres of water every day to parched Chennai

Highlights The train left from Jolarpet railway station carrying 2.5 million litres

Chennai Metro Water has set a target of ferrying 10 million litres a day

Tamil Nadu government has allotted Rs. 65 crore for this project

The first 50-wagon train carrying water to Chennai arrived at the parched city this afternoon from Jolarpet railway station carrying 2.5 million litres of water. A second train will also carry more water to the city. The Chennai Metro Water has set a target of ferrying 10 million litres a day.

"Based on slots available for movement of these trains the capacity could go up," said a railway official.

Southern Railways will charge Chennai Metro Water Rs 7.5 lakh for each trip. The Tamil Nadu government has allotted Rs 65 crore for this project.

Officials say the trains took around five hours to reach Chennai's Villivakkam, 220 km away, from where water is being pumped to the Kilpauk Water Works, the pumping station that distributes water to localities in the city.

However, the water supply by train would not increase supply to Chennai. It will only ease the pressure on the state government to ensure a minimum supply of 525 million litres to residents against the requirement of 830 million litres a day.

A 3.5-km-long pipeline was laid connecting the Jolarpet railway station with a pumping house. A trial run of the supply line was carried out on Wednesday.

The Tamil Nadu government has allotted Rs 65 crore for this project

Around 100 pipes installed near the railway tracks would be used to supply 2.5 million litres of water from all the wagons to a treatment plant, said an official of Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board, news agency PTI reported.

"After treatment it would be sent for distribution. This arrangement has been made for the next six months until the (advent of the) north-east monsoon," PTI quoted the official as saying.

Blaming four parched drinking water reservoirs outside Chennai due to inadequate monsoon last year, Chennai Metro Water has cut piped water supply by 40 per cent. In many areas, residents don't get piped water at all.

Chennai Metro Water has deployed 900 tankers for street supply. Many families say they get five pots of water daily from the tankers. Private water tankers have doubled the price since April. The Madras High Court has criticised the Tamil Nadu government for not doing enough.

Chennai is one of the 21 Indian cities that the government think tank NITI Aayog has said would run out of water by 2021.

With inputs from PTI