The Hindu Business Line : TN: Digging deeper for water

HOW MUCH DEEPER CAN THEY GO? An open well on a farm in suburban Tirumazhisai, about 30 km from Chennai, has gone dry. The owners are sinking borewells to go up to a depth of 60 feet to tap water. Metrowater tankers fill up water from this farm. - Bijoy Ghosh

Chennai , Feb. 9

WATER suppliers are a concerned lot. Not just the Government agency, Metrowater, but also the private tanker operators catering to a large part of Chennai.

Business is bound to be good. But where does one go to get the water? Ground water is getting scarce and they have to look farther and deeper - and summer has not even begun.

Tankers are collecting water from borewells located 25 - 30 km outside the city, according to Mr G. Raja, spokesman for the Chennai Drinking Water Tanker Lorry Owners' Association. But some of the sources are drying up, and in a few weeks they will probably have to look farther afield.

Water is being transported from the western suburbs such as Poonamallee, Thirumazhisai, north past Red Hills and Sholavaram, and south from Pallikaranai. Going farther will increase costs but consumers may have no choice this summer.

A 12,000-litre supply costs about Rs 750-800 against Rs 500 last year, he said. The transporters pay the borewell owners Rs 50 - 100 a load. The total expenditure involved in bringing water to a consumer is about Rs 475-500 a trip compared to Rs 300 last year. This does not take into account the maintenance of the vehicles.

Mr Raja estimates that at least 1,000 tankers are operating in the city against 600 last year. They make about 5,000 - 6,000 trips each day, much fewer than last year because of restrictions against the entry of tankers into the city during the day. Therefore, more tankers are getting into the business as there is a continuous demand.

With Metrowater handling the demand from a large segment of domestic consumers, private suppliers cater to the commercial segments and to the more affluent domestic consumers.

As demand increases, farmers have earmarked the wells from which to sell water to the city while ensuring that they have enough for irrigation.

According to Mr M.K. Dhandapani of Cauvery Water Supply at Thirumazhisai, water is available at a depth of 55 - 60 feet and where once there was a 20-foot column of water there is just 5 - 6 feet now. He supplies water to the Metrowater tankers, and is paid Rs 50 a load. It takes about 45 minutes to fill the tankers, compared to four or five minutes last year. This means that power consumption is doubled or trebled and can go up to Rs 18 for filling up one tanker.

Farmers in the area are either deepening their borewells or digging new ones. Mr Dhandapani says he is looking at digging a 90-foot well in a day or two. It will cost him Rs 75-110 a foot, but the investment is needed if more water is to be found. In the circumstances, water could last up to a fortnight or one month at the most before the older wells dry up, he said.

Borewell owners in the southern part of the city voice similar thoughts. Water is not likely to last long, and the tankers will have to travel much farther in search of water. At Kovilambakkam, near Pallikaranai, the local administration is considering a ban on selling water to the tankers. The water table has dropped below 70 feet. But for now, the wells get recharged during the day for a tanker or two to fill up.

With the increased movement of tankers within the city, the association is taking care to educate drivers, according to Mr Raja. Along with the traffic authorities who are making attempts to educate the drivers, the association is ensuring that the drivers undergo a two-day training at the Institute of Road Transport. Traffic authorities have observed that the drivers who have been trained are involved in significantly lower number of accidents.

With the number of tankers increasing, there is also a competition for good drivers. They are paid about Rs 60 and the assistants about Rs 20 a day.