The State Minister for Water Resources, Mr P.J. Joseph, has said that the government would devise projects to increase the per capita availability of water from the current 25 litres a day to 70 litres in two years.

Besides, the districts that do not have the Japan-aided drinking water project will also be brought under the projects worth Rs 5,725 crore, he said.

The Minister was speaking after laying the foundation stone for the Data Centre and Quality Determination Centre for the Ground Water Department at Kakkanad near here.

He said that steps are being taken at various levels to increase the availability of water from 235 million litres a day (mld) to 390 mld. Projects will be taken up to purify seawater for drinking purposes in coastal areas, he said and suggested that Israel model mobile desalination plants would be a practical solution for this.

The Minister pointed out that only 29 per cent of people in the State are getting tap water.

The Quality Determination Centre here will help test the groundwater quality in an area.

Canal project

Speaking at another function, the Minister said that the government has taken steps to make the canals in the city navigable under a Rs 500-crore project. These canals have become dumping grounds and need to be cleansed immediately.

A meeting chaired by the Chief Minister has cleared Rs 70 crore for beginning the work with cleaning the Edappally canal. The project will be completed before the metro rail project is completed, Mr Joseph said.

Meanwhile, the Kochi Metro Rail Project Ltd had taken steps to develop a 12-km stretch of the Edappally canal so as to connect the waterways with metro stations.

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