To strengthen the city's water supply network, the BMC is replacing British-era pipelines across Mumbai. The civic body invited tenders for the replacement of pipelines in Colaba, Fort, Churchgate, Mohamad Ali road, Byculla and Nagpada on Wednesday. The estimated cost of the work is Rs 6.74 crore.
The BMC will also be laying 450-900 mm of new pipelines in Kandivali, Borivali and Dahisar at the cost of Rs 23.63 crore. Whereas, the replacement of old pipelines from Bandra to Andheri and Kandivali to Dahisar is already underway.
Around 25 per cent or 900 million litres of water is wasted daily due to leakages and unauthorised connections. To stop water theft, the BMC introduced the 'water for all' policy on May 7, aiming to provide water connection to the unmapped settlement of the city.
But, the pipelines laid during the British era have become weak and fragile over the years. They develop bursts and leakages resulting in the loss of lakh of litres of water every year. To prevent it, the BMC has undertaken a replacement and restoration project of pipelines.
“Mostly the complaint of leakages and contamination has been more in suburbs. To avoid contamination, the BMC periodically conducts leak detection programs at the ward level and repairs the pipeline wherever needed", said the civic official. The civic body supplies 3,850 litres of water daily in the city.
