5 years after launch of 24×7 water project in Malviya Nagar, demand yet to be met in other parts of South Delhi

Nearly five years after 24×7 water supply was launched in Geetanjali Enclave and Navjeevan Vihar under the Malviya Nagar Water Services (MNWS), round-the-clock water supply is yet to be extended to other areas that fall under the ambit of the MNWS in South Delhi. While the pipeline network has been readied, the quantity of water supplied by the DJB to the MNWS for distribution has not increased in the past five years, officials said.

The project is being implemented in South Delhi on a public-private partnership basis with Suez, and the MNWS, a special purpose vehicle, took over in 2013 with a contract period of 12 years, till December 2024. The target for the MNWS was to ensure 24×7 supply to all nine DMAs (district metered areas) under its ambit. While the two localities have round-the-clock supply, others like Sarvodaya Enclave and Shivalik Colony get around three to eight hours of supply and parts of Chirag Dilli get around two to three hours of supply.

The issue is the availability of water, said Ajay Saxena, Vice President, Suez. “We get around 63 to 64 MLD (million litres per day) from all sources. According to the contract, we were supposed to get 80 MLD at the Malviya Nagar UGR (underground reservoir). In other areas, the system is ready… flow meters have been installed, and valves are in place. Once we get the desired quantity of water, 24×7 supply can be ensured,” he said.

The water demand for all areas under the MNWS was estimated to be 78 MLD in 2017, 80 MLD by 2022, and 83 MLD by 2024. The supply, however, has remained more or less the same since 2017, Saxena added. Most of the water comes from the Sonia Vihar water treatment plant, which draws Ganga water. The average supply now is 135 LPCD (litres per capita per day), and the contractual target is 150 LPCD.

There are around 52,891 regular connections in the area, of which the two localities that have round-the-clock supply comprise only 801 connections. The total population in the area under the MNWS is expected to be around 5.5 lakh.

A spokesperson for the DJB said that availability of water is an issue. “Available water is being distributed across Delhi, so that at least one-time supply can be provided,” the spokesperson said.

The process to extend 24×7 supply to parts of East and Northeast Delhi began in December last year with a tender being invited.

Unauthorised connections and the non-revenue water that arises from them are other issues. The area still has around 12,114 unauthorised connections, Saxena said. Of the 63 to 64 MLD that is supplied, around 41 MLD is billed, which means that 33% of the water supplied is non-revenue water. The target is for the MNWS to reduce the non-revenue water to 15% by the end of the contract period.

While presenting the budget earlier this year, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia spoke of 24×7 clean drinking water and clean Yamuna as “two more big dreams” that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has given to the people of Delhi. “Better management of water coming to Delhi from outside, and better harvesting of rainwater will ensure 24 hours water in the coming three years,” he said.

Kejriwal earlier this month had said that the AAP government is working on increasing water production by recharging groundwater to provide a 24×7 water supply to all homes.