The city is overly dependent on water from the Cauvery river and it was high time it looked for other alternatives, said K.N. Rajiv, Nodal officer (Jala Suraksha Bengaluru) and Chief Engineer, Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB). He stressed on the need for Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) and conserving water.
He was speaking at an event where members of the public gave suggestions on water security as part of the Brand Bengaluru campaign in the city on Thursday. “Over 9000 suggestions have come online as well,” Mr. Rajiv said.
Many water conservation activists and residents who participated in the event suggested recharge of underground water table through recharge wells and regulations to prevent over exploitation of water table, including doubling penalty on those digging illegal borewells, apart from making RWH a norm in all buildings.
Residents also batted for better Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) infrastructure in the city, including making it mandatory at all apartments and moving towards more decentralised STP infrastructure. This will provide treated water to be reused, thereby conserving water, and at the same time ensure untreated sewage is not let into Storm Water Drains (SWDs) and lakes, they said.
Mr. Rajiv said that these suggestions along with the over 9000 suggestions that have come online, would be compiled and submitted to the government.
