After a decade-long wait, Cauvery water to finally reach Bengaluru's outskirts

Bengaluru: The peripheral areas of Bengaluru, whose water taps have been running dry every summer, can breathe a sigh of relief as the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is all set to launch the fifth phase of Cauvery Water Supply Scheme (CWSS) on Wednesday .

The project – which will fetch an additional 775 million liters per day (MLD) of water from a distance of about 100 km – is expected to help 50 lakh people, officials said.

Speaking to select media houses on Tuesday, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said the 775 MLD of water will help one third of Bengaluru’s population spread across seven assembly constituencies including Mahadevapura and KR Puram.

“We have provision to bring 30 TMC of water from river Cauvery. So far, Bengaluru received about 1,440 MLD of water (19 TMC). The fifth phase (775 MLD or 10 TMC of water) can address Bengaluru’s water requirements for the next ten years,” he said.

He said the seven assembly constituencies are almost double the size of the BBMP’s erstwhile boundary.

Stating the city's population would grow by 20 to 25 lakhs in the next four years, The Bengaluru Development Minister said the plans are in the pipeline to take up Cauvery 6th phase. “Bengaluru is attracting people from all over the world. As the weather and culture is attractive, a number of IT companies, educational institutions and hospitals are coming up in the city,” he said.

The government, he said, is exploring ways to draw more water from Cauvery either by replacing the first pipeline that was laid several years ago with a bigger pipeline or laying a new pipeline directive from Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) dam. “There is a provision to bring more water but land acquisition will be a big challenge. We have found feasibility to use the gravity of the water to bring Cauvery till Bidadi. From there, we can pump the water to Bengaluru. We are studying the feasibility,” he explained.

He also said the Yettinahole project will be ready by 2027. “It will provide 2.5 TMC of water for the periphery of Bengaluru. Makedatu is another project we are keen to take up,” he said.

Cauvery Fifth stage

- 775 MLD of water will be be pumped from TK Halli, Harohalli and Thataguni, a distance of 100-kms from Bengaluru

- Areas that will benefit are: Yeshwantpur, Bengaluru South, Byatarayanapura, T Dasarahalli, Mahadevapura, RR Nagar and Bommanahalli

- Four lakh new Cauvery water connections will be added, taking the total count to 14.64 lakh

- Costing Rs 4,336 cr, project was funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency