Water wasting ban: MC has served 800 notices since April 1

The ban on washing cars and courtyards as well as watering of lawns came into force on April 1. As many as 14 MC teams have conducted checks in various sectors. Today,62 notices were served.

The civic body imposes the ban during summers to prevent wastage of water. For violating the ban for the first time,a notice is served.

If the violation is repeated a second time,a fine of Rs 500 is imposed that is added to the bill. The third time,the water supply is disconnected.

The other violations include leakage and overflow from desert coolers,use of booster pumps on direct supply lines,leakage in pipelines from ferrule to water metre among other things. However,the majority of notices have been served for washing cars and watering lawns.

The city receives 87 million gallons daily (mgd) of water. Of this,67 mgd is canal water and 20 mgd is from tubewells.

During summers,the demand for water witnesses an increase and around 113 mgd water is required. The projected demand for the current year is 115 mgd.

By 2016 it is estimated that 130.17 mgd water is likely to be required. The demand for water in the city might be increasing,but there seem to be no immediate ways to increase generation.

The proposal for augmentation of water supply through Phases VII and VIII would take a couple of years to be operational. By the end of May,the civic body is likely to start supply of tertiary treated water to gardens and greenbelts in all sectors.

This would save drinking water from being used for irrigation. Around 6 mgd drinking water would be saved this way.