Chennai: Tamil Nadu’s urban centres are staring at water shortage due to poor monsoon and prolonged heat. Water managers, however, said Chennai and most southern urban centres are in a relatively comfortable position for now.Chief secretary Sai Kumar and municipal administration and water supply additional chief secretary Gagandeep Singh Bedi held a video conference with district collectors and commissioners of corporations and municipalities, directing them to take preventive measures.Water storage stood at just 31% of the combined capacity of 224tmc of 90 reservoirs in the state. Five reservoirs have nil water storage, while nine reservoirs have less than 25% of full storage capacity, said officials of water resources department according to Thursday’s report.The condition of irrigation tanks is more worrying. As many as 3,483 of the 14,141 PWD tanks have gone dry, while over 6,100 tanks hold less than 25% of their storage capacity following poor rainfall.Chennai remains better placed than most cities. The city reservoirs together hold more than 44% of their total storage capacity of 13.2 tmc. “Chembarambakkam and two other key reservoirs that supply drinking water to Chennai have adequate storage. We can manage drinking water supply for the next two months,” a senior Tamil Nadu water supply and drainage board (TWAD Board) official said.The city also relies on desalination plants to supplement its daily drinking water requirement of 1,040-1,075MLD.In Trichy, the corporation requires about 165MLD but is supplying only around 150MLD, leaving a deficit of 15MLD. Officials attributed the shortfall to poor inflow from Mettur reservoir, which has affected recharge of infiltration wells, and weak rainfall. The corporation plans to flush existing infiltration wells and develop additional borewells to sustain supply.Residents of Madurai are also concerned over depletion of water levels in reservoirs supplying drinking water. Vaigai reservoir stands at 33ft and Mullaperiyar at 112ft. About 256 cusecs of water is being released from Mullaperiyar for drinking water schemes serving Madurai and nearby villages.While there is no immediate shortage, officials said continued releases without adequate inflow could shrink the buffer, raising the possibility of supply pressure from September if the northeast monsoon fails to revive.“Collectors have been authorised to use available general funds to augment water sources and flush borewells wherever required. They have also been asked to expedite capital water supply schemes nearing completion,” Bedi told TOI, adding that projects in Coimbatore and Madurai are in the final stages. TWAD officials have also been instructed to conduct regular field inspections to prevent potable water leakage and wastage.
