Tamil Nadu has been at the forefront of drinking water supply management conceiving technology-aided solutions to stave off a crisis in coastal districts. It pioneered desalination as early as the 1990s. The arid Ramanathapuram district and the expanding Chennai city that grapple with a severe water scarcity were the first to get desalination plants.
The Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board (TWAD) had initially set up nearly 15 small-scale reverse osmosis desalination plants in Ramanathapuram, which are over 30 years old. Subsequently, during the government of M. Karunanidhi in 1999, one of the first major seawater desalination plants was commissioned at Narippaiyur in Ramanathapuram with a capacity to treat 3.80 million litres a day (mld). The facility was maintained by BHEL, Ranipet.
While at that point in time desalination technology was a saviour, the State has re-examined its strategy, over the years, drawing from its experience of high operation and maintenance cost of the plants. Recently the plants in Ramanathapuram were closed.
