Frequent power outages have disrupted drinking water generation at the Kerala Water Authority's (KWA) treatment plant at Chowara, the third largest facility in the district. Supply to several tail-end areas within the city has also been affected due to power failures at the Thammanam and Thevara pumping stations.
Areas Affected
Certain city outskirts and Paravur municipality are affected due to disruptions in water supply from the Chowara plant. Places including Vyttila, Petta, Kadavanthra, Panampilly Nagar, Pachalam, Vaduthala, and West Kochi face water shortage due to electricity failures in pumphouses, including at Thammanam.
Cause of Power Disruptions
KSEB is providing electricity to the KWA's treatment plant at Chowara using an aerial bunched cable. Whenever there are adversities like wind or thunderstorm, the cables are snapped. A KWA official associated with the plant said, "In the past few days, we have been facing power outage at our Chowara plant. It cuts down potable water generation and disrupts our supply."
The official added, "We have already proposed a project to lay underground (UG) cables to the plant, for which the government gave nod to sanction Rs 4.9 crore. However, the government has sanctioned only part of it. Otherwise, we could have started the work. We are trying for one-time full payment and start the work soon. If UG cables are laid, we will be able to avoid frequent power disruption."
Impact on Pumping Stations
Pumping from pumphouses like Thammanam is affected when there are power outages. Another KWA official explained, "Once the power failure causes disruption in supply, it will be difficult for water to reach tail-end areas even if the pumping is resumed after the restoration of power."
Storage Tank Issues
In places like Vyttila and Petta, residents have not been getting adequate water ever since the KWA's storage tank at Thammanam collapsed partially. Vyttila councillor V P Chandran said, "Though we took up the issue with the KWA and the district collector, no solution could be found. If KWA can restore the storage tank's capacity by repairing it, pumping from the tank at Thammanam could be much more effective. Even after five months, the authorities could not find a solution to the issue."
Reduced Supply in Pachalam and Vaduthala
Water supply to Pachalam and Vaduthala areas has reduced significantly for the past several months. Power failures that affect operations of pumphouses are causing a further dip. Henry Austin, councillor from Pachalam, said, "Earlier, we were getting 2 million litres per day (MLD) each from Kalamassery and Thammanam pumphouses. Now, we get just 1 MLD from Thammanam and around 0.75 MLD from Kalamassery. Moreover, an Amrut project to replace old pipes is under way in Pachalam and Vaduthala area. The work sometimes causes pipe bursts and results in water supply disruption."
