Sangli civic area to get 10% water cut, 1.3 crore litres less a day

Sangli: The drought caused by the long break in the rains will now be felt in the Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad municipal area too. Under a state government order, the city will have a 10% water cut, reducing the water drawn each day by about 1.3 crore litres (13 MLD). The administration is planning the change, and the cut is likely to take effect after Dussehra.

The three cities currently draw about 130 MLD a day. Sangli and Kupwad get their water from a jackwell on the Krishna river at Sangli, and Miraj draws from the Krishna at Miraj. The state has ordered a tenth of that pumping stopped.

In the first phase, drinking water tanks in Kupwad will be left unfilled in rotation. Wards 2, 8, 9 and 19 in Kupwad are supplied from 12 municipal tanks. Under the schedule, the Government Colony tank (Monday), Kapse Plot (Tuesday), Shalininagar (Wednesday), Shamnagar's old tank (Thursday), Shamnagar's new tank (Friday), Government Colony's old tank (Saturday) and the Kupwad Gaothan tank (Sunday) will not be filled on those days, so the areas they serve will get no water that day. The water supply department's executive engineer has written to the corporators of the wards concerned.

Rainfall in the state has fallen this year because of El Niño, and drought has been declared in 265 talukas where the first kharif trigger applied. The state has ordered dam-by-dam planning so that, by using the water in dams, lakes and other sources sparingly, drinking water lasts until August 31, 2027.

Source: Saamana