As much as Rs 100 crore was spent on the project over three years –the plan was to lift river water, give it primary treatment in a plant, and release it into a baby canal to supply farmers across Pune district with water for non-drinking and agricultural purposes. According to PMC and the state irrigation department, this recycled water would irrigate almost 21,000 farm hectares in Indapur taluka alone.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar had inaugurated the project as recently as October 1.
Asked about its almost-immediate shutdown, a senior PMC official said on condition of anonymity, “We tested the project and released water on the inauguration day itself.After that, however, we have had to shut it down till the irrigation department informs us about completion of work on its baby canal.“
The water had been released at the time from the canal located within Sadesatra Nali village limits on Pune-Solapur Road. From this `disposable point of water’, around 700 metres down, one aqueduct slab was found damaged so badly that when the water was released, it could not pass through and spread out around instead. Minister of state for water resources, Vijay Shivtare, who was also present at the inauguration, said he was “unaware“ about work on the baby canal. “I will let you know.Around Rs 16 crore worth of work has already been done on the canal.“
B B Lohar, executive engineer of the Khadakwasla irrigation division of Pune, evaded the issue, saying, “The department had last released water through this canal in 2005. Thereafter, it had not been used for this purpose. At present, we have some rain, so there is no need to release water for farmland just yet. When we require water for farmlands, we will tell the PMC to give it to us.“
According to the agreement, the irrigation department was to provide 11.50 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of water to PMC, of which the civic body would treat 6.5 TMC of sewage water to release.PMC had begun the project in 2012.
Source : Mirror
