Canal breach in Sonipat fixed, but water supply normalcy may take a few days more

GURUGRAM: The breach in the NCR water canal, which supplies raw water to the Chandu Budhera and Basai water treatment plant (WTPs), has been repaired by the irrigation department. The department manages and operates the channel, and restored full supply on Sunday.
Raw water started reaching the WTPs on Monday and drinking water supply is expected to normalise in the next few days, officials from the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) said.
The breach was reported on January 1 at Kharkhoda in Sonipat. It was plugged on January 4.
According to officials, concrete took time to set in due to the cold weather. Supply was restored at full capacity from Sunday and water started reaching the city from Monday as the distance between Kharkhoda and Gurgaon is around 70km, they said.
Superintending engineer (irrigation) Tarun Agarwal said water supply was never stopped completely, only the quantity was reduced. "We had asked GMDA to ration supply to avoid a crisis. The breach has been plugged and we have restored normal supply. The peak demand of Gurgaon is around 120 cusec," Agarwal told TOI.
GMDA executive engineer Abinav Verma confirmed that they have started receiving raw water from the NCR channel and reiterated that rationing was done to ensure water supply to maximum areas.
"We received 120 cusecs of raw water on Monday as compared to 100 cusecs on Sunday. Rationing of water is being done to ensure some water supply to maximum areas of the city," said Verma, adding that as soon as the raw water supply quantum improves, supply to residents will be enhanced.
Residents, particularly those in areas far away from the WTPs, may have to wait for a few days for regular supply. According to an official, areas such as sectors 55 and 56 near Ghata village and adjoining areas, which are located roughly 22km away from the Basai water treatment plant, get water 24 hours after it is pumped out from the WTP on normal days.
"In case of regular supply, the pipeline is filled with water and it takes just a few hours for water to reach the destination. When a pipeline gets empty in case of disruption in supply, it takes a long time for water to reach the destination, as the pipes are first filled with water and the surplus reaches the destination," the GMDA official added.
As a result, areas located close to the WTPs will have normal supply within a day, while the areas that are far away will get the supply in a few days.
At present, GMDA is supplying 500 million litres a day (MLD) of water from Chandu Budhera and Basai water treatment plants. NCR water canal supplies around 100 cusecs of raw water daily to the WTPs on normal days. At present, GMDA is supplying 300 MLD water from Chandu Budhera and 200 MLD from Basai.
The NCR channel originates in Sonipat's Kakroi village, from where Yamuna water is supplied to Gurgaon and Delhi. The channel terminates at the Chandu Budhera plant in Gurgaon after covering 71km. It was commissioned in 2012 and was built at a cost of Rs 322 crore. It was developed jointly by the HSVP, Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) and the state irrigation department. The channel can hold 800 cusecs of water.
The Chandu Budhera plant was built by the HSVP (earlier known as Huda) with a view to catering to the needs of the city and new sectors - 58-115 - developed along SPR and the Dwarka Expressway.