Mullaperiyar water project capacity to go up in Mar

Madurai: The final phase of Mullaperiyar drinking water project, to increase its capacity from 90 million litres per day (mld) to 125mld, is underway with the project expected to be completed by the end of March. The Rs1,295 crore project is being enhanced by adding more pipelines to supply drinking water to more households.A senior Madurai corporation official said that while the project already met the capacity mentioned in the original contract, it is being expanded to meet current requirements in more areas across the city. "Currently, water is being supplied through three main pumping stations, each handling about 30mld. To increase the capacity to 125mld, an additional pumping station is being built and will be activated," he said.The project infrastructure is being executed in multiple packages to ensure precision in the laying of massive transmission mains and the integration of treatment facilities. The first package, involving the construction of the core infrastructure for the expansion, was completed. Packages 2 and 4 involve laying of large-diameter feeder lines as well as water distribution hubs. These packages are set for completion by the end of this month.The remaining packages 3 and 5 deal with the construction of additional pipelines in areas where water supply is low. "Construction of these lines will be done once a full survey regarding locations where the lines are required is completed, and maps calculating how they can be efficiently placed are drawn up," the official said, adding that these packages are being fast-tracked in order to meet the March 2026 deadline.The corporation allocated an additional Rs71 lakh to a private construction management and supervision consultant. "These funds will go towards administrative costs and salaries of employees until March. The expenditure ensures that the technical teams remain on-site to verify quality and engineering standards of the final pipeline connections that are to be made under package 5," a corporation official said. The official also added that technical experts are considering raising the capacity from 125mld to 135mld to further increase water supply for residents of the city.