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COVER STORY |
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COVER STORY |
WATER SCARCITY Come dry season and
Kathmanduites reel under the scarcity of water. People living in the core city areas are
subjected to acute shortage of drinking water. In the dry season - during the months of
March till July before monsoon sets in - the residents scramble to get their buckets
filled with water. Taps go dry as the Nepal Water Supply Corporation (NWSC) supplies water
in phases with residents receiving water in alternate days. Compared to their demand of
190 millions liters of water daily (MLD), the valley residents only get 90 MLD during
these months. As the ambitious Melamchi water project is still far away and the debate on
privatization of water supply lingers on, the authorities need to develop short-term plans
to quench the thirst of parched people By SANJAYA DHAKAL Shanta Shrestha is a worried man. Every
alternate day he wakes up in the middle of the night, runs to get buckets, mugs and what
have you and frantically opens the tap in his house. A small-time shopkeeper living with
his five-member family in Khichapokhari, Shrestha religiously follows this midnight
routine. No, Shrestha is not suffering from insomnia
and neither is he sleep-walking. It is the routine he hates but has to follow if he wants
himself and his family to survive the dry months in Kathmandu. As the NWSC supplies water
to his neighborhood only on alternate days and that, too, between 2 to 4 am, he has to act
in such a weird manner. "I have no option. If I do not fill the buckets in time, we
will have to live without water," he said.
Krishna Regmi of Maitidevi also has
similar problems. Regmi and his wife collect whatever amount of water they can when their
taps come alive. "And sometimes it is three to four days before the water is
supplied," he complained. "I have to attend my office in the morning but I also
have to help my wife collect water. It is mentally and physically very stressful. Though
we live in a metropolis we are denied of basic services like water supply." In the months from March to June/July, NWSC
mobilizes dozens of tankers to supply water in areas that are most hit by the shortage.
People scramble to get their pots filled with water. Even the scores of traditional stone
waterspouts in the valley are crowded with thirsty people. People have started installing electric
water pumps to extract water from their supply pipes as they do not get sufficient
quantity of water. "When it is so difficult to get enough
water to drink, you can imagine the hardships we have to suffer regarding using water for
bathing and washing purposes," said Shrestha. Welcome to the capital of the country that
is second in the world in terms of water resources potential. "The claims that Nepal
is rich in water resources fly in the face of this acute shortage of drinking water,"
said Regmi. For the last one decade, people like
Shrestha and Regmi have been promised adequate water supply once the big project like
Melamchi is completed. But the ground reality is haunting them hard. Demand And Supply With the rapid urbanization and expansion
of population in the capital valley, there has been tremendous strain on the
infrastructure. Drinking water has been the most hit. The NWSC is responsible for the drinking
water distribution in 23 urban areas outside the valley and in 5 municipalities within the
valley, it is responsible for drinking water distribution as well as drainage system. At present, the total population of the
Kathmandu, including Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur districts, crosses more than 1.6
million. Besides, if one counts the floating population also, this could reach almost 2
million. Moreover, the rate of population growth of the capital city has been recorded at
more than 5 percent, which is significantly higher than the national average growth of 2.2
percent. The average daily demand of an individual is 100 liters of water. "The total demand of Kathmandu valley
is 190 million liters of water daily (MLD) at present. It is rising with the pace of
urbanization and population growth. Whereas, the supply capacity is abysmal. In the wet
season we can supply up to 130 MLD which again falls to 90 MLD in dry season," said
Kaushal Nath Bhattarai, general manager of the NWSC. The shortfall of 100 MLD in wet season is
the reason why valley residents have to scramble whenever NWSC dispatches tankers to
supply water in dearth-hit localities.
In the year 2002, the production
capacity of NWSC inside the Kathmandu valley was 132 MLD whereas its average daily
production was 112 MLD. There are more than 100,000 water connections (household
connections) in the valley, covering over 60 percent of the total residents. The NWSC has 17 service reservoirs and
overhead tanks including the major ones in Sundarijal, Pharping, Balaju and Sainbu. There
are 15 treatment plants and 74 pumping stations. More than a dozen tankers ferry water to
shortage-hit localities like New Road, Khichapokhari, Tripureshwore, Bhotahity,
Bhotebahal, Maitidevi, Baneshwore, Koteshwore and so on. On the other hand, the distribution network
of the NWSC, too, is getting old and shabby. According to Bhattarai, the distribution
network is 120 years old and needs urgent replacement as it suffers from frequent leaks
and bursts. Whopping 37 percent of water is wasted due to leakage. According to the United Nations, over one
billion people in the world still lack access to safe drinking water and about 2.4 billion
are without adequate sanitation. In Nepal, over 40 percent of the population still lack
access to drinking water and over 70 percent are denied safe drinking water. The Solutions Although the Melamchi project is promised
as the ultimate solution, it will still take another seven years to complete. "Though
officials claim they will complete the Melamchi project by 2007, it is not possible with
the present pace of implementation. It could be 2010 before the water from Melamchi
actually reaches Kathmandu," said a water expert. By the time Melamchi comes on board, the
demand of water in the capital valley will have risen to 260 MLD. "We need short-term
projects to help quench the thirst of citizens," said Bhattarai. "Melamchi is still far away. They are
just building the access road at present. It is, therefore, important to construct small
water projects in the fringes of Kathmandu valley," said Dinesh Manandhar, water
engineer and director at the Welink Associates. According to Manandhar, there are
potentials to get water from streams as well as watersheds around the fringes of the
valley. One such fringe project is the Manohara
water project that is about to be completed. With the objective of providing relief to the
thirsty Kathmanduites, the Japanese government has helped in the construction of Manohara
project. The first phase of the Project for
Improvement of Kathmandu Water Supply Facilities is almost complete. The project is
expected to provide additional 20.6 million liters of water daily (MLD) to the main
supply. "In the first phase of the project, we
have collected the sub-surface water of Manohara stream in the wells and subjected it to
standard water treatment facility. This phase, which will be operational within a month,
will provide water to residents of neighboring Madhyapur Thimi and Bhaktapur," said
Bhattarai. According to project manager M.N. Baidya,
more than 45,000 residents of the area will be directly benefited by the first phase,
which alone had cost Rs.650 million. The Japanese government has already agreed to help in
the second phase of the project, too. "Upon the completion of the second
phase in early 2004, we will supply extra 13 MLD of water to Kathmandu. In the second
phase, which will cost around 7 million US dollars, we will have to construct modern and
huge elevated tanks in Minbhawan and Anamnagar, where the water from Manohara will be
supplied through trunk pipes," said Bhattarai. According to Bhattarai, the additional
water will be particularly helpful as it will provide relief to those 2,22,000 residents
of Kathmandu who have to suffer the scarcity most like in Baneshwore, Koteshwore,
Sankhamul, etc. He also said that the utility of Manohara
project would not diminish even after Melamchi becomes operational. "In 2010, our
water demand will have shot up to 260 MLD so apart from 170 MLD from Melamchi, we will
always need the existing supply to meet the demand. This is where the long-term utility of
projects like Manohara can be justified." Apart from Manohara, the NWSC is developing
short- and mid-term projects like surface water sources (10 MLD), ground water extraction
(10 MLD), Sainbu water project (10 MLD), Balkhu (4 MLD) and Sundarijal and Balaju (10 MLD)
to increase its supply. Some of these projects are already complete whereas others are in
the process of implementation. The NWSC is engaged in repair of leaks and maintenance of
reservoirs which will also help in the production capacity. Experts say that the NWSC could also
increase its production capacity if it concentrates on rainwater harvesting. "Cities
like Chennai in India have achieved a lot in rain water harvesting," said a water
engineer. "Kathmandu, too, has potentials for this. In monsoon, we do have heavy
rainfall, which can be scientifically collected and preserved for consumption." Some individuals in Kathmandu valley have
already started harvesting rainwater. "They are found to use bamboo pipes to collect
rain water in drums. This could be a viable alternative if pursued vigorously," said
the engineer. Till now, however, the NWSC has not engaged in rainwater harvesting. Some experts have even suggested that the
handing over of management of water supply to private sector could result in improvement.
But this is theoretical aspect. "What we are concerned about is lack of water in our
taps. We are suffering from the shortage of the most basic wants of life. I do not think
mere handing over the management to private sector would result in overnight
success," said Regmi. "Besides, the authorities need to
check unbridled use of groundwater. The concept of groundwater licensing should be
implemented," said Manandhar. At present, hundreds of people have resorted to digging
wells in their compounds to extract ground water, which is leading to decrease in the
water table. The ongoing Melamchi project or the debate
over privatization, therefore, cannot provide any succor to people like Regmi and
Shrestha. Apart from completing big projects like Melamchi, the authorities should also
give ample attention to developing small projects that can provide relief to the people in
the city. MELAMCHI PROJECT The ambitious
multi-million-dollar project is still a dream for parched Kathmanduites By SANJAYA DHAKAL The Melamchi is the largest drinking water
project in the history of the country. With the objective of supplying adequate drinking
water to the residents of capital valley, the Melamchi project has been in the offing for
the last one decade. Politicians of all hues have pointed to
Melamchi every time people raised the issue of water shortage. But the project may still
take another half a dozen years or more to complete.
Various donors have committed to
finance the US$464 million Melamchi Water Supply Project (MWSP) including the Asian
Development Bank, Japan Bank for International Cooperation, Norwegian Agency for
International Development, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Nordic
Development Fund and Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. The MWSP is an inter-basin water supply
project which supplies water from snow-fed Melamchi river in Sindupalchowk district to the
Kathmandu valley. The project is designed to solve the chronic water supply shortage in
the Kathmandu Valley with the diversion of 170 MLD water from the Melamchi River through a
26-km long tunnel in its first phase. "Although Melamchi has been in the
news for the past one decade, the project gained momentum only after the Melamchi Water
Development Board (MWDB) was set up in 1998. Currently, we are constructing main access
road essential for the construction of tunnel. We are also focusing on land acquisition
and compensation. We are in the initial phases of the project implementation," said
Raj Kumar Malla, executive director of the MWDB. The Melamchi project has been designed in
three stages to meet the increasing water demand of Kathmandu valley for up to 2030. In
the first phase, which is expected to be completed within 2010, 170 MLD of water will be
diverted from the Melamchi river. An additional 340 MLD of water will be added from the
Yangri and Larke rivers in the second and third stages respectively. The first stage consist of five different
components, including the Melamchi Diversion Scheme (MDS), Water Treatment Plant (WTP),
Bulk Distribution System (BDS), Distribution Network Improvement (DNI) and Wastewater
Management (WWM). The MDS includes construction of diversion
weir to divert water into a 26.5-km tunnel. The tunnel will transport the water to the
water treatment plant to be constructed at Sundarijal. Access roads, too, have to be
constructed. At Sundarijal, WTP with an initial capacity
of 170 MLD but with the provision of expansion to 510 MLD will be built at Mahankal of
Sundarijal VDC. Altogether, 54 km ductile iron pipeline will be laid to carry the treated
water from the plant to different bulk distribution reservoirs. Under the DNI component,
the existing distribution system will be upgraded and wastewater management system
improved under the WWM component. The total costs are divided into these
components with MDS receiving $74.29 million, WTP $39.33 million, BDS $48.47 million and
DNI $65.65 million. Around 162 hectares of land have to be
acquired for the implementation of MWSP and a large number of people resettled. As the
project is still in the initial phases of implementation, Kathmanduites are not counting
on it for the short-term relief they so desperately need. Though Melamchi would cater to
the city's future needs, the authorities need to develop short term projects that can be
quickly implemented to tend to the immediate water needs of the capital residents. |
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