24x7 water supply, biogas plant run on water hyacinth approved

A source from the Smart City team said that the roundtheclock water supply will be taken up at an estimated cost of Rs 75 crores by the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewage Board (CMWSSB). “The project will account for future usage of water as well, during the implementation, ensuring that the pipelines can handle that quantity. 

This service will also be provided in vulnerable and economically backward areas too. The smart metering system will be implemented to ascertain usage and fix leakages in the 48,000 connections. For this, T Nagar has been divided into 19 district metering areas (DMA), keeping in line with global best practices to divide large areas into smaller ones to ensure efficient implementation,” said the official.

For the first time in the city, a five-tonne biogas plant run on the water hyacinth fished out from the city’s water bodies will be implemented at a cost of Rs 3 crore in T Nagar.

“This will not only assure a fuel supply but also clear up the city’s water bodies.

The biodiversity will also improve as removal of the invasive species will aid in the betterment of the city’s water bodies,” said the official.

The board meeting also approved the Mambalam Skywalk, at a cost of Rs 29 crores, which had been deferred until now. The construction of stormwater drains missing links in T Nagar will be taken up at Rs 150 crores. Project management consultants have been appointed to monitor these works as well as the Integrated Command and Control Centre, which will integrate all the city’s services and line departments in a single dashboard.

The Board has deferred the group lighting and dimming of LED lights project for 38,000 street lights. “This project involves the connection of these street lights to a feeder network, whose dimming could be controlled remotely.

The project has not been cancelled but deferred for the moment,” said the official.