Coimbatore, July 7 (IANS) The Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board on Tuesday initiated the process of transferring the operation and maintenance (O&M) of the Pillur-III drinking water supply scheme to the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC), marking a significant step in the management of one of the city’s largest drinking water projects.
The Rs 779-crore Pillur-III scheme, commissioned in 2024, supplies around 178 million litres of drinking water (MLD) every day to several parts of Coimbatore.
Although the project was completed by the TWAD Board, its operation and maintenance period ended nearly six months ago.
The Board has continued to manage the scheme during the interim period while awaiting the formal transfer to the civic body.
Officials said the Coimbatore Corporation had earlier sought additional time to assume responsibility for the project due to Assembly election-related duties and other administrative commitments.
With those commitments now over, the TWAD Board has formally written to the corporation to begin the handover process.
As part of the transition, Coimbatore Corporation Commissioner Katta Ravi Teja recently inspected the facilities at the Pillur dam and has proposed constituting a technical committee to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the scheme before it is officially taken over.
The committee will inspect the infrastructure and submit its findings to the Tamil Nadu Director of Municipal Administration (DMA), Thiru. S. Sivarasu.
After the review, approval will be sought from the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department.
Officials expect the transfer process to be completed in August.
Once the handover is completed, the Coimbatore Corporation will be responsible for operating and maintaining the scheme’s major infrastructure, including raw water and clear water pipelines, feeder mains, distribution networks, mass storage tanks (MSTs), pumping stations fitted with four high-capacity motor pumps, and other associated facilities.
However, the 178-MLD water treatment plant will continue to remain under the TWAD Board.
Under the project agreement, the Board is responsible for operating and maintaining the treatment plant for 10 years before handing it over to the corporation.
Since about three years have already elapsed, the treatment plant will remain under TWAD’s control for another seven years.
Coimbatore receives drinking water from the Siruvani and Pillur reservoirs as well as the Aliyar dam.
Water from the Pillur reservoir is distributed through the Pillur-I, Pillur-II, Pillur-III and the Kavundampalayam-Vadavalli-Veerakeralam (KVV) Combined Water Supply Scheme.
At present, the TWAD Board manages Pillur-I and Pillur-III, while the Coimbatore Corporation operates Pillur-II.
Officials said the transfer has become necessary as the TWAD Board has continued to incur operational and maintenance expenses well beyond the agreed period, making it appropriate for the civic body to take over the day-to-day management of the drinking water supply scheme.
–IANS
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