Reportedly Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister krishna Byre Gowda on Friday said that the state government is expected to release Rs 1,300 crore for the first phase, which will see drinking water pipelines installed from reservoirs in Mandya, Raichur, Bijapur and Kolar districts. Meanwhile according to Chief Engineer of the Rural Water Supply Department Prasad, who is in charge of the project, the detailed project report (DPR) for the project for only Mandya has already been prepared.
prasad said “The water will be drawn from local reservoirs”. Furthermore the ambitious project is estimated to cost Rs 53,000 crore and made its appearance in Chief Minister Kumaraswamy’s maiden budget of 2018-19. The project involves construction of pipelines and purification mechanisms so clean drinking water is supplied to every household. prasad added “Based on the feasibility study that was conducted, by 2050, the population of Karnataka will require only 10% of the live storage of water in all reservoirs in the state for drinking water purpose”.
Environmental activist Leo Saldanah says “Not a single drop of rainwater must be wasted. In rural areas, especially, ensuring that all open wells are desilted will ensure that rain water is collected. Every home must be rain water proofed so that every drop is collected and reused. This is not going to cost the government thousands of crores of rupees. It is economical and sustainable".
