Ggm set to implement new water management system

Officials said decision was taken after assessment of the results of the pilot project conducted by GMDA to gauge the efficacy of the system.

The Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has invited companies for implementing its ambitious Centralised Integrated Water Management System (CIWMS) to ensure equitable distribution of water supply in the city and cut theft and wastage of water, senior officials associate with the project said on Monday.

GMDA officials said in the pilot project, the authority was able to cut water theft by up to 70%. (HT File)

They said decision was taken after assessment of the results of the pilot project conducted by GMDA to gauge the efficacy of the system. The officials added that the during the pilot undertaken from February 2021, the Authority was able to ensure improves water supply to areas located at the tail end of the distribution network such as Dundahera Village where low pressure of water had been a persistent problem. The officials added that the system also helped the authority cut theft of water, another rampant problem in the city.

Under the CIWMS, special flowmeters will be installed on the main supply line from Basai water treatment plant up to Dudahera as well as 39 locations on the supply line and underground water tanks operated by the authority. These devices showed the water flow through the pipe to various locations, and allowed engineers to gauge which areas were getting water on low pressure, and where illegal leakages are taking place.

According to officials, in the pilot project the authority was able to cut water theft by up to 70%.

In the pilot project, the authority used boosting stations to provide proper pressure of supply to areas where the problem was indicated by the flow meters.

Officials said that the timeline of the completion of this project, worth ₹17.5 crore, is 12 months. They added that entire system will be connected to the Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) of GMDA for better monitoring of water supply in the city.

The pilot project involved the 1200 mm pipeline which starts from Basai Water Treatment Plant (WTP) and supplies water up to Dundahera. Nearly 39 locations and underground tanks were identified on this channel such as Palam Vihar blocks, Sector 21, Sector 22, Suncity, Sector 18, Caterpuri, Electronic City, among others where water supply problems were reported from every year.

PC Meena, GMDA CEO, said that the objective of adopting the advanced CIWMS was to ensure that water reaches equally to every household, and no underground tank which falls under GMDA should be devoid of adequate water supply. “It has been found that citizens are now having access to equitable water supply. The CIWMS comprises flow meters to gauge water flow, control valve to set data on the quantum of water to be supplied in any area, pressure transmitters to gauge water pressure, level transmitter to measure the level of water in the Underground tanks wherein all data is transmitted daily to ICCC Center for the team to identify and monitor water supply flow across the pipeline,” he said.

Meena said ‘Jal Mitra’, a group of citizens, has also been formed by GMDA which includes a representative from each of the identified location with whom daily readings and water supply records will be shared.

Meena said that in the next phase of the project, the 1300 mm water supply pipeline from WTP Basai to sector 16 boosting station will be taken up. He said that the tender for this work has been floated.

PK Aggarwal, Smart City project advisor, said that every year the issue of water shortage was reported from Palam Vihar and Dundahera as they at the fag end of the distribution network. “With the highly efficient CIWMS, a proper distribution mechanism has been put in place, which will plug leakages and overflows. We are working on implementing the system on the entire city’s distribution channels and pipelines shortly,” he said.

Meena has further directed the officials that non-revenue water must be further brought down by identifying illegal connections and providing necessary flow control devices.