Sale of drinking water is the most lucrative business now in this port town with the simmering heat soaring further everyday and the flow of water in the Tamirabharani dwindling fast with the dry spell continuing in the catchment areas of Papanasam and Manimuthar dams that collectively decide the fate of the perennial river.
After the storage level in Papanasam and Manimuthar dams has come down to 24 and 66 feet respectively, flow of water in the Tamirabharani has become meagre which has substantially affected the supply of drinking water from the 236 infiltration wells sunk along its 123 Km-long watercourse from Papanasam to Punnnaikaayal. Consequently, supply of drinking water to the residents has been badly hit and the urban civic body can supply water only once a week to its citizens.
Having been pushed to the corner, the residents have been forced to buy the 20-litre packaged drinking water for ₹30 a bottle. After the demand increased, the suppliers have hiked this price to ₹35 a bottle.
“And, this is the price applicable for people living in the ground floor. If we’ve to carry it to the first floor, it will be ₹40 per bottle,” said drinking water supplier V. Ponnusamy.
Similarly, water tanker owners were making a killing with the demand from hotels and the industrial units going up sharply.
“The demand will swell phenomenally after the annual fishing ban comes to an end on June 15 with the ice factories increasing their production capacity as they will have to supply ice bars to the mechanized boats also. Seizing this opportunity, the water tanker owners will hike the price substantially,” said an ice factory owner.
District Collector K. Senthil Raj said the district administration was taking all out efforts to ensure sufficient drinking water supply to the residents during this summer by sinking deep borewells wherever they were needed.
“At the same time, we’ll not allow the private water suppliers to plunder the groundwater from their sources near ranches as it will kill farming in that region completely,” Dr. Senthil Raj assured.
Published - May 24, 2023 08:13 pm IST
