Daijiworld Media Network

Ponda, May 7: With its water levels further dropping below normal, the Opa Water Treatment Plant (WTP) now faces the worst water crisis after 17 years. To beat the burden the water resources department (WRD) has opened its last water resorvior on Monday to rejuvenate the river.

“Annual water crisis was a continuous problem in the Opa water treatment plant until the construction of the water resorviors in 2003. We are also trying to fetch water from the Ganjem river, Codli mining pits, and Selaulim dam,” WRD officials said.

WRD canal officer Ankush Gaonkar told TOI reporters, “The 19% deficit rainfall last monsoon, delayed showers and pre-monsoon showers this summer are the reasons behind the crisis. The 12 resorviors store about 21.9 lakh cubic meter of water and the WRD opens them as per need. While the WRD fetches 35 megaliters per day (MLD) water from the Mahadai at Bolcornem canal and pours it in the Ganjem river, which flows into the Opa, the Selaulim treatment plant pours 48MLD water in the Kalem river that flows down to the Opa water treatment plant.”

In addition to this, 70MLD water is being poured into the river from the mining pits of Vedanta and an abandoned pit near Someshwar Temple at Codli Dharbandora and Zarapkar mines at Satone Dabal, Gaonkar said. As reported in TOI.