The pipeline under the Alappuzha drinking water project has developed another leak. The latest burst occurred in front of Federal Bank at Thakazhi on Tuesday. It was the 72nd leak on pipelines under the project in less than five years.
Officials of the Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) termed it a minor leak. "We will examine the damaged portion of the pipeline after stopping pumping on Wednesday night. Besides the leak in front of Federal Bank, another crack on the pipeline has been detected near the Thakazhi railway crossing. If the Railways permits, we will launch repair work to fix both the leaks on Friday," said an official.
The Alappuzha drinking water project was executed by the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) with Central assistance under the UIDSSMT in 2017. However, since its launch, pipelines under the project had burst numerous times, majority of them at Thakazhi and Kelamangalam in the past five years, disrupting water supply to residents in Alappuzha municipality and eight nearby grama panchayats, along with damaging the Ambalapuzha-Thiruvalla State Highway.
Though the UIDSSMT launched the work to replace defective pipelines at Kelamangalam and Thakazhi in February this year, it came to a grinding halt in May after the contractor left midway. While the laying of 370 m of pipeline between Kelamangalam and Valiyapalam was completed, the work remains incomplete between Valiyapalam and the Thakazhi railway crossing.
Officials said the contractor visited the work site on Wednesday, and they planned to restart the pipe-relaying work at Thakazhi on August 1.
