Keep ready an alternative plan for water supply if monsoon fails, officials told

Senior IAS officer and Mysuru district In-charge Secretary S.Selva Kumar on Saturday told officials here to prepare an alternative plan for ensuring drinking water supply in rural areas in case of failure of monsoon in the coming days.

Senior IAS officer and Mysuru district In-charge Secretary S.Selva Kumar on Saturday told officials here to prepare an alternative plan for ensuring drinking water supply in rural areas in case of failure of monsoon in the coming days.

An interim plan had to be kept ready for supplying fodder and drinking water, Mr. Kumar said.

Presiding over the district-level KDP meeting, he said rains were expected this month but alternative measures were necessary for making drinking water available if rainfall was deficient. No town or village must face water crisis, Mr. Kumar directed the senior district officials.

Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra said there won’t be a water crisis until August 15. In case of no rains, water could be drawn from the dead storage levels in KRS and Kabini dams. Water conservation awareness among the people had become all the more important now and people must judiciously use water in the wake of deficient rains.

Comparatively, nearly 35 per cent of less rain had been recorded in April and May and therefore the water levels in the dams had depleted. However, the district had sufficient fodder stock and a fodder crisis appeared unlikely, he added.

Executive Engineer V. Suresh Babu said a ₹110.62 crore action plan had been prepared for taking up works in rural areas as an alternative measure for water supply in case of no rains in the days ahead. In this regard, spot inspection of places where the works had been proposed had also been completed.

Under Jal Jeevan Mission, work orders had been issued to some works while work orders for a few others would be issued soon. More than 650 works had been completed under the mission.