Maradu municipality to lay new drinking water pipeline to Valanthakad island

Maradu municipality launches ₹17-lakh project to provide uninterrupted drinking water supply to Valanthakad island families.

The Maradu municipality has launched a ₹17-lakh project to ease the acute drinking water scarcity experienced by nearly 45 families on Valanthakad island.

Work to lay the pipeline will begin on Wednesday (February 12). The plan is to lay a 2.5-inch pipeline from the Maradu water tank supply point directly to the island. It was expected to ensure uninterrupted water supply to the islanders, who had been reeling under water shortage for long, municipal chairperson Antony Asanparambil said here on Tuesday.

The present connection, which is from Nettoor and entering through the western side of the island, lacked adequate pressure in times of reduced water supply from Maradu. This pipeline network was laid around two-and-a-half years ago. An increased pressure had to be maintained to provide water to the families, he added.

Repeated efforts to resolve the drinking water crisis had failed as the authorities were unable to arrive at a permanent solution. Though officials of the Kerala Water Authority were entrusted with identifying problems in the existing distribution network, they were not able to plug the issues.

The municipal authorities pointed out that the islanders residing on the southern side were the worst hit as they were not getting adequate drinking water for the past several years. Mr. Asanparambil said the municipality had been supplying water in tankers during the summer season. The islanders queuing up to collect water supplied in tankers had been a common sight, he said.

The decision to lay a new distribution network was taken as efforts to resolve problems in the existing line had failed to yield results. The proposed network was expected to offer a permanent solution to the problem, he said.