Shimla water woes to end by 2025

Shimla, august 18

If one goes by the claims of Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited (SJPNL), water related issues, which the city is facing at the moment, will be resolved by 2025.

The World Bank-funded Shimla Water Supply and Sewerage Services is scheduled to be completed by 2025 and the three components of the project – Bulk Water Supply from the Sutlej river, 24×7 high pressure water supply and strengthening and extension of sewerage services – are at different stages of implementation.

“The work on the bulk water supply scheme from the Sutlej is already on. This will initially provide an additional 42 million litre per day to the city,” said SJPNL MD Pankaj Lalit. “Besides, the tenders for providing 24×7 high pressure water supply to the residents have been floated. These will be opened by the end of

October. Also, the DPR

for the sewerage services has already been sent to the Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation and the approval is awaited,” said Lalit.

If the project goes as per plan, Shimla will be one of the few places that will have 24×7 high pressure water supply. “For the 24×7 water supply, around 70 per cent of the existing water pipes will be replaced and there will be continuous pressure of 12 metre in the pipes. The high pressure will ensure that top floors of the building will also get water regularly,” said SJPNL GM Anil Mehta.

Besides, around 40 water storage tanks will be built at different locations across the city to ensure smooth supply. At the moment, lack of storage capacity also hinders regular and equitable distribution of water. “These will be small tanks, with a capacity of around 5 million litre. With these tanks spread across the city, the distribution will become far more convenient,” said SJPNL AGM Sumit Sood.

Unlike today’s distribution system which is largely manual, the post-2025 system would be mostly hi-tech and digitalised. “SCADA system and smart metres would reduce our reliance on human intervention. With SCADA, each connection would be monitored online and distribution would be far more equitable,” said Sood.

Steps being taken

• The work is progressing on the bulk water supply scheme from Sutlej. This will initially provide an additional 42 million litre per day to the city.
• For the 24×7 water supply, around 70 per cent of the existing water pipes will be replaced.
• Around 40 water storage tanks will be built at different locations across the city to ensure smooth supply.