It has been reported that the Ministry of Environment and Forests has finally cleared a proposal to supply drinking water to M.M. Hills Devasthanam complex. The project which will cost Rs. 28 crores involves laying a 21 km pipeline through forest area from Kaveri river. Work on the project is scheduled to begin this month.
It is astounding that the authorities have decided to go with this project when an alternate scheme which is superior to the above proposal in every respect was presented to the government more than 12 years ago. This scheme makes use of a natural perennial stream which flows through a valley called Uttappiam Halla at a distance of 1.5 km from M.M. Hills. It proposes a barrage about 10 m high across the stream to create a small lake. A well or a borewell just downstream from the barrage (and recharged by the barrage) will be the source of water.
A comparison of the two proposals, the official (OP) and the alternate (AP) is given below:
1. Capital expenditure:
OP costs Rs 28 crores. AP costs Rs.2 Crores.
2. Maintenance cost:
The source of water in OP is river water and it has to be filtered and purified. This costs money. The source of water in AP is groundwater and may not need any treatment at all.
Electric power requires to pump water a distance of 21 km from Kaveri river in OP is prohibitively high when compared to pumping water a distance of 1.5 km in AP.
3. Maintenance difficulty:
Protecting 21 km of pipeline in OP against thieves and vandals is much more difficult than protecting 1.5.km of pipeline in AP.
In addition, the environmental damage in building a 21 km pipeline through dense forest in OP is much greater than in AP.
Thus the alternate proposal (which was based on a detailed study conducted by the Department of Mines and Geology at the instance of the then DC of Mysore, Ajay Kumar Seth) seems superior to the project now being undertaken. It is a mystery why the government has opted for the more expensive and more environmentally damaging proposal.
V.Mahesha, Working President, Mysore Grahakara Parishat