Mullaiperiyar drinking water project for Madurai city nearing completion

MADURAI: The much-awaited Mullaiperiyar drinking water project, which is being executed under the AMRUT scheme at a cost of Rs 1,295.76 crore by the Corporation authorities to cater to the needs of households in Madurai city, is gaining momentum. Since the launch of the project, almost 95 per cent of civil works have been completed and only electro-mechanical works remain to be done.

“Of the total length of 93.30 km water pipe laying works almost 83 km have been completed and the rest is expected to be finished by September 15”, Commissioner of Madurai Corporation KJ Praveen Kumar said on Sunday.

“Now, we have begun efforts to supply water through twenty DMA (District Metering Areas) as part of its initial commissioning phase in October.” A team of engineers conducted an audit in Pune on machines, which need to be erected as part of the electro-mechanical works. They also completed site and factory inspections and those machines would reach Madurai this month.

Considering the projected population by 2025, the scheme was designed as per Government of India norms to supply 135 litres per capita per day (LPCD) to residents under city limits. It is estimated to benefit a population of 17 lakh and a floating population of 4 lakh. “The biggest ever project in the history of Madurai Corporation is under process in five component work packages based on specifications,” the Commissioner told DT Next on Sunday.

A check dam construction is on along the Vairavanar river, a tributary of the Mullaperiyar river at Lower Camp in the Theni district. Though four motors were enough to pump water into a collection well, two motors were kept in reserve. Further, the Commissioner said raw water would be discharged into the treatment plant at Pannaipatti to meet the requirements.

Four of five water-carrying bridges have been constructed and the other one will be done soon. Clear or treated water from the 125 MLD treatment plant at Pannaipatti would reach through 80 km at the project site at the Madurai entrance.

Among 37 overhead tanks under the limits of Madurai Corporation, the construction of 35 OHTs is nearing completion. Since the other two OHTs were planned for construction on the PWD lands, the authorities obtained permission, and soil testing was done to commence work soon.

The project was pitched as a way to provide around 3.5 lakh household service connections in Madurai. While distribution line and pipe laying works to provide water service connections under the fourth package are almost over, the Corporation council recently gave its nod to execute similar works under the fifth package.

Earlier the personnel managed to cover 600 metres of pipe laying works daily, but it has risen to 1,400 meters every day now. ‘Though the entire project has a set timeline of December 2024 for completion, we are pushing forward to make it at the earliest,” Praveen Kumar said.

On the other hand, there are some challenges in laying pipes at Vandiyur, where grounds in parts were hard rock. The Commissioner also added that the Theni District Administration is extending all cooperation in the project execution.