The Maharashtra Authorities on Monday authorized a Rs 2,190-crore challenge to assemble a 34-km tunnel from the Khadakwasla dam to Phursungi to avoid wasting water misplaced owing to leakage and evaporation alongside a canal supplying water from the dam to Pune’s rural areas.
Pune metropolis attracts its water from the Khadakwasla dam, which additionally caters to the agricultural areas, for which water is launched by way of a canal going by way of town. Leakages, evaporation and the theft of water being equipped by way of the canal have been a trigger for concern in summer time. The air pollution of the canal water has additionally elevated prior to now few years.
The thought of a tunnel to provide water to Pune’s rural space thus arose.
“The growing urbanisation and land encroachment alongside the canal have lowered the canal’s water carrying capability. The challenge would save 2.18 TMC water in a yr, equal to at least one and a half month’s requirement of town, and assist to herald 3,472-hectare land below irrigation,” stated an officer of the water sources division.
The canal goes by way of city areas and is above the bottom in most areas, apart from the underground stretch from Swargate to Race Course of about 2 km. The canal goes by way of 14 villages—Khadakwasla, Nanded, Kirkatwadi, Dhayri, Vadgaon Budruk, Hingne Khurd, Parvati, Wanowrie, Ghorpadi, Hadapsar, Sadesatranali, Manjari, Shewalwadi and Phursungi.
Open channels are prone to pollution, rain-dissolved chemical substances, animal and unauthorised human waste discharges, evaporation, flash flood-led accidents in slum areas, and water air pollution because of the discharge of waste from factories, properties, automotive washing and idol immersion, the officer added.
As soon as the tunnel is constructed, the canal could be closed and 350 hectares of land shall be out there for different public functions.
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