Bhanjanagar: As part of the state government’s vision to provide safe and piped drinking water to every household by 2024, a total of 40 mega drinking water projects are in progress across Odisha. Also, there is possibility of some new projects being undertaken.
However, owing to delays in the tender processes and other reasons, the ambitious projects may miss the projected deadline. Aiming to ensure drinking water supply to residents of 11 blocks and three NACs in Ganjam district, a mega drinking water project is in progress.
Carried out through the Jal Jeevan Mission in collaboration with the Centre, Rs 1,973 crore will be invested for the project, which will draw water from the Mahanadi.
After being awarded the tender, L&T company has taken responsibility for the project and started the survey works. Work will start after the survey is completed. It will take a span of two years to complete the project.
After completion of the project, the residents of Belguntha block and NAC, Buguda block and NAC, Polsara block and NAC, Bhanja Nagar, Jagannathprasad, Purusottampur, Sorada, Aska, Dharakot, Kabisuryanagar blocks including two villages of Beguniapada block will be benefitted.
A total of 253 panchayats are present in the area. In each of these panchayats, there will be one pump set and one overhead water tank. The village and panchayat committee will look after the project after its completion. More than 10 lakh people reside in more than 1,98,000 houses in these areas. Till now about 60 per cent of the local population is getting the benefit of supplied drinking water.
The project aims to collect 1,340 lakh litre of water daily from the Mahanadi near Gania Chhamundia of Daspalla block in Nayagarh district through pipeline to the big sump to be constructed at Gayaganda under Jagannathprasad block. Drinking water will be supplied to different localities from there after filtering. For this, a 16-acre plot has been acquired at Gayaganda.
Also, land acquisition process has started in all the panchayats for the construction of sumps and overhead tanks. Senior-level officers had inspected these places many times before the declaration of the tender. Asked, superintending engineer of Rural Water Supply & Sanitation (RWSS) department Saroj Kumar Kar said the company has already started survey work. Where there is no electric power supply, the project will work through solar energy.
PNN