3,000 bulk water meters to be installed

NEW DELHI: Nearly 3,000 bulk meters will be installed in the Capital by December, to check the amount of water being supplied to colonies, the Delhi government announced in the 2018-19 Budget.

The meters will be installed at all water treatment plants, primary and secondary underground water reservoirs, and help in preventing water theft.

The government has allocated Rs 2,777.5 crore for water supply and sewage treatment – 19.85 per cent more than the revised estimate of 2017-18.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that Delhi, with a population of about two crore, gets 900 MGD of water.

This means there is 200 litre of water per capita available per day, which shows there is no shortage of water in Delhi, he said. However, he added there was a problem of management of resources.

Deputy CM Manish Sisoda said that in the last 70 years, there was no available data on how much water was supplied to which colony, water stolen and lost due to leakages.

"In the review of the last Outcome Budget, it came to notice that 47 per cent of water in Delhi is non-revenue water. It means, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) does not know about its water lost due to theft or leakage," he said.

The data on bulk water meters will be uploaded so that citizens get to know how much of water is being supplied to their colony by the DJB.

The Board also has plans to lay internal sewer lines in 162 colonies in Palam, Bijwasan, Matiyala, Dwarka, Najafgrah, Mundka, Rithala and Vikaspuri. These will be completed in a phased manner by December 2020.

The sewage from these colonies will be treated in Nilothi, Dwarka, Rithala and Najafgarh STPs and about 13 lakh population will be benefitted.