Hyderabad faces severe water crisis, but officials promise situation will improve

Twelve new GLSRs have been completed, the residents are likely to get water supply on alternate days.

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With the onset of summer in Hyderabad, several parts of the city such as Kukatpally, Qutubullapur, LB Nagar and Seri Lingampally municipal circles have been facing a shortage of drinking water in the city.

Currently, residents in these circles are getting water once in four days and are forced to rely on alternatives to get water.

Several residents have purchased motors in order to fill more water during the period when there is supply of water. However, not everyone can afford to purchase them.

“There are no borewells and hence we rely on drinking water supplied once in four days,” Saba Begum told Zumbish from The New Indian Express.

Apart from these areas, several parts of Old City have been facing a shortage of drinking water in the city.

Residents have to spend Rs. 50 every day for a can of water.

“For the past four days, there is no sign of water in this area. Anyway we used to get water once in two days and that too, there is no fixed timing. But now we have to depend on our relatives in other parts of the city or buy water bottles from shops,” Yousuf, a resident of Salala Barkas told The News Minute.

However, the residents of the areas are likely to get improved water supply from mid-April.

According to the Times of India, twelve new ground level service reservoirs (GLSRs) have been completed and once the reservoirs are commissioned, the residents are likely to get water supply on alternate days.

Meanwhile, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) officials have been reportedly planning to conduct a trial run in the next few days.

“We have completed works pertaining to 12 reservoirs to provide water supply this summer. Simultaneously, work is also going on at a brisk pace in the remaining GHMC circles. We hope to complete them by May-end. The HMWS&SB has deployed special teams to review progress of each reservoir and complete them,“ a senior HMWS&SB officer told TOI.

HMWSSB, with the permission of GHMC, had earlier planned to dig 2,700 km of roads in 11 merged municipalities, including Kukatpally, Uppal, LB Nagar and Quthbullapur, to lay drinking water pipelines.

However, the officials have planned to speed up work in these four circles as there were no hurdles for construction of reservoirs and laying of pipelines.

The water supply board has taken a loan of Rs.1900 crore from HUDCO (Housing and Urban Development Corporation) to construct nearly 60 reservoirs and lay 2,500 km of pipelines for the water supply.