At least 796 habitations, mostly in the Godavari delta, will face the drinking water problem in the summer across the East Godavari district from mid-May, given the availability of drinking water in the sources including surface water.
The Rural Water Supply Department statistics show that a whopping 23 % of habitations will have to face the drinking water problem in the summer among the total 3,467 habitations in the East Godavari district.
The habitations that will face the drinking water problem mostly depend on the groundwater that is being drawn through borewells. The mandal-level committee has already completed a field survey, identifying the available surface and groundwater sources, maintenance status of the summer storage tanks.
The supply of water through the canals will be stopped by March end by the Irrigation authorities and the Rural Water Supply authorities should ensure filling up the summer storage tanks by March end to be able to supply the drinking water for the rest of the summer.
Rural Water Supply Superintendent Engineer T. Gayatri Devi told The Hindu on Wednesday: "As many as 796 habitations have been found to be short of the drinking water by May end. Nearly 80 % of them are in the delta area. A proposal seeking ₹ 12 crore grant for the implementation of summer action plan for drinking water supply has been submitted to the State government".
Transportation: In a recent review meeting held under the aegis of East Godavari Collector D. Muralidhar Reddy, the district authorities have decided to transport the drinking water to the needy habitations through vehicles.
"We are prepared to transport the drinking water to the needy through the vehicles. A total of 815 bore wells have been identified to clean them, addressing the problem of drawing muddy water owing to falling groundwater sources", added Ms. Gayatri Devi.
The summer action plan includes addressing the water woes in the tribal pockets, in which water will be transported through various ways in the accessible areas, added Ms. Gayatri Devi.
