The Hindu Business Line : Wanted: Private initiative to solve water crisis

Water tankers hired by Metrowater filling up water from a borewell in a farm at suburban Tirumazhisai, about 30 km from Chennai. Hundreds of water tankers, both hired by Metrowater and those belonging to private operators, depend on water sources in this area to supply to residents and business establishments in Chennai. - Bijoy Ghosh

Chennai, Feb. 10

FOR businesses in and around Chennai, tackling the water shortage is turning out to be expensive. Their predicament underlines the need to encourage private initiatives to solve the problem. But that is precisely what is not happening, say those interested in the sector.

The hurdle is Section 42 (3) of the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Act, 1978. It says that the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (Metrowater) is the sole agency to provide water to the city for any use, except irrigation. The private sector is interested in this business, but the legislation prevents it from investing in desalination and waste-water treatment on a large scale.

Four years ago, the Chennai-based Membrane Technologies Ltd applied to the Tamil Nadu Government for permission to produce industrial water from the Kodungaiyur sewage treatment plant. Membrane Technologies wanted 50 million litres of sewage per day. But all it got was a letter from the Government, which cited the Section 42(3) and said, "permission to private firms cannot be given."

The letter, issued in November 2001, said that Metrowater "itself is going ahead with putting up a 50 mld plant to supply renovated sewage to industries in the Manali area." Three years down the line, the proposed Government project is yet to take off.

Membrane Technologies also wanted to put up one million-gallon-a-day sea-water desalination plant as a demonstration unit.

Says Dr C.H. Krishnamurthy Rao, Chairman of the company, "We are prepared to bring in our own money and put up 20 such plants along the coast" if only the State Government would either buy the potable water or let the company sell it directly in the market. Permission denied.

Industries in the Manali belt too wanted to jointly put up a 60 million litres a day desalination plant. But the authorities were not favourable to the idea and preferred to let Metrowater set up the facility.

According to the Manali Industrial Association, units in the area need about 40 million litres of water a day. Metrowater supplies them the water through pipes from its well fields at Panjetty.

With yields from these wells coming down, Metrowater wants to substitute at least 50 per cent of the supply with tankers. Water is now available to the industries at Rs 40-60 a cubic metre but this can go up with initial estimates indicating that the price may go up to Rs 80-145.

If the Government permits them to set up a large facility as a common infrastructure, it will not only help the industrial units but some water can also be diverted to residential areas in the vicinity, say some of the persons concerned.

Other units such as EID Parry and ICI have opted for small desalination plants. The larger users, such as CPCL and MFL, have set up tertiary treatment facilities and are recycling their water. However, treatment is an expensive business and depending on the technology used the variable cost works out to about Rs 25 - 50 a metre cube, according to the association.

Other companies too are looking at desalination plants. Chemplast intends to put up one at Karaikal and another at Mettur, at cost of around Rs 3 crore each. EID Parry proposes to expand its desalination plant at Ennore from the present capacity of 15.5 lakh litres a day. Petroleum refiner CPCL has a plant that can recycle 1.5 lakh litres of water every hour. The company has tendered for another desalination plant, capable of producing 170 lakh litres a day. These plants add to the costs.

For example, CPCL's proposed desalination plant could cost around Rs 200 crore.

Companies that cannot readily sink in money in a desalination plant look to the ground for water. For example, Orchid's bulk drug plant in Alathur, 30 km south of Chennai, requires around 5 lakh litres of water a day. The rice mills around Chennai each need about 12,000 litres a day to process 10 tonnes of paddy.

For now, the mills are able to draw groundwater, at a depth of about 150 feet, but the level is receding. They may soon have to buy water.

The city's five-star and four-star hotels, which need between 1.2 lakh and 3 lakh litres a day, have a similar problem. One tanker load (12,000 litres) costs around Rs 600. A swimming pool alone requires about 30 tanker loads (but the pool comes in handy as a bulwark against a fire).

Although water shortage is not new to the hotel industry, it is worse this time around, as the shortage is more acute and occupancy levels have shot up — about 90 per cent in January. They have been depending on private tankers for quite some time now.

Sources said that on an average the entire infrastructure for the water system for a four-star hotel would cost around Rs 80 lakh. A few hotels (such as the Le Royal Meriden, which needs 3 lakh litres a day) have put up reverse osmosis plants where the water is treated before use.

A combination of sewage conversion and sea-water desalination plants can be of a big help. "Reclaimed water can be sold at the same price as what Metrowater is selling," says Dr Rao.

If power is supplied to a water reclaimer at the same price it is supplied to Metrowater, then reclaimed water can be even cheaper, he said.