Opa level dips to lowest in 3 yrs after Ganjem pipeline glitch

Ponda: Following the Ganjem pipeline snag, the water level in the Khandepar river basin at Opa dipped to a three-year low on Thursday.
According to officials at Opa Water Works, the water level in the river, from where Opa treatment plant draws water, declined to 2.7m. This is the lowest mark in the past three years, with a similar level recorded in May 2020.
Owing to the hot season between March and May, the level of Khandepar river reduces due to evaporation and ground seepage, and hence the river basin needs to be rejuvenated by augmenting water from the Ganjem Water Scheme and Selaulim dam.
While the Ganjem scheme pours around 70 million litres of water per day (MLD) into Khandepar river via a special 1,000mm diameter pipeline laid about three years ago, Selaulim dam transfers its share of 48 MLD through an 800mm diameter pipeline.
However, during the last fortnight, the Ganjem pipeline supply had to be discontinued due to a valve leakage, joint rupture, and dislocation of mechanical joint at Ganjem. Around March 20, a valve leakage was developed for the first time, followed by joint rupture around March 26.
Late Wednesday, the mechanical joint of the pipeline was dislocated and supply had to be halted. However, around 35 MLD water was being poured into the river through an old pipeline, Krishnakant Patil, a superintending engineer, water resources department (WRD) said.
However, the water level in the river basin at Opa dipped further to 2.7m on Thursday. In April-May 2020, Opa Water Works had recorded a similar level, Nivruti Parsekar, executive engineer, PWD water division, said.
Opa Water Works draws around 153 MLD on a daily basis and has a total of five treatment plants that supplies around 142 MLD to over 95% of the areas in Ponda and Tiswadi talukas.
This includes Panaji, Bambolim, Taleigao, Ribandar, and the entire Ponda taluka.