BBMP to pitch in, help BWSSB supply water

BANGALORE: In a rare show of concern for the citizen, the BBMP and BWSSB hammered out a solution for water-starved Bangalore - they agreed to share the cost of supplying water in tankers to all 198 wards of the city.
The water crisis took on a more humane dimension after BBMP commissioner H Siddaiah and BWSSB chairman P B Ramamurthy met to address the issue.Ramamurthy said the water problem could be somewhat mitigated if BBMP provides tankers and pays for their rentals, while BWSSB supplies the water.
However, BBMP councillors contended that it was the BWSSB's job to source and distribute water. At the end of a 30-minute argument, BBMP agreed to pay for the tanker rentals, but asked BWSSB to supply water and arrange for 198 tankers for all the wards. "We at BWSSB are very energy-dependent, and cannot help if there is load-shedding. Due to these systemic problems, we cannot supply water in adequate quantities. If BBMP bears the expense of the tankers, we can supply water to all 198 wards," Ramamurthy said.
The panel, which included Bescom engineers, decided that borewells that have been dug but not energized, would be connected immediately if there are electric poles nearby. The rest would be energized in a phased manner.
Most corporators complained of water shortage and complete failure of the sanitation system. In Jogupalya, for instance, the corporator was getting complaints of fever and diseases due to contaminated drinking water. Many also complained that they had borewells but they were not energized and inaccessible. In Byatarayanapura, there were complaints of weak electricity poles and exposed wires.