BENGALURU: To minimise the
water crisis
, the state govt has decided to utilise
milk tankers
of
Karnataka Milk Federation
(KMF) to supply water to Bengalureans and to also take over
private borewells
in and around the city.
Deputy chief minister
DK Shivakumar
held a meeting on Monday with officials of various agencies, including BBMP, BWSSB, Bengaluru Urban district administration, transport department, police, and Bescom, to discuss how to tackle the crisis unravelling this summer. Shivakumar told reporters later the govt has given owners time till Thursday to register their water tankers. It will take over all the tankers in the city. The state has also asked KMF to give its tankers to use them to supply water.
"We know that milk production has decreased in the state and there are some tankers lying unused. We'll clean them and use them to supply water," he said.
Stating that there are 14,781 borewells of BBMP and BWSSB in the city, Shivakumar explained that 6,997 of them have dried up while the rest are yielding water. He directed Bescom to identify - using its linemen - private borewells operational in Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, and Ramanagara districts.
"Water isn't anyone's property, it is the property of the govt. So, we'll take irrigation and private borewells if needed to supply water. The govt will pay some compensation to the borewell owners for using them to supply water," said the deputy CM.
He added that more borewells would be drilled in the city. At present, there is an issue between the contractors and drillers from Tamil Nadu. "I'll discuss with them and resolve the price issue. This matter will be resolved in a few days," he said.
Shivakumar further said the Cauvery Stage V project is nearing completion and Cauvery water will be supplied to 110 villages that come under BBMP jurisdiction by the end of May. There is a small issue with the construction of pipelines for 2km. "I'll visit the place, rectify the issues and make efforts to expedite the work," he said.
Threat of seizure
Shivakumar warned the owners of private water tankers to get their vehicles registered by Thursday or face consequences. He said police and RTO officials would seize unregistered tankers. There are over 3,000 tankers in the city, and only 219 are registered with BWSSB. The deputy CM also said he would hold a meeting with the association of water tanker operators on Thursday and fix the price for tankers based on the distance between water source and supply point.
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