The Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) along with other government agencies, including MCG, HSIIDC and HSPCB, will carry out a survey to ascertain the amount of potable water being used in each building of the city.
The initiative is being carried out as part of their efforts to conserve groundwater, the level of which is depleting in the city and nearby areas. The decision came at a meeting, which was chaired by GMDA chief VS Kundu, on the use of treated water in Gurgaon on Wednesday.
Kundu has directed all departments concerned to start surveying the buildings. “Our aim is to understand the total quantity of potable water being used for non-drinking purposes, and then replacing it with treated water,” said the GMDA chief. Non- drinking purposes include horticulture, gardening, agriculture and industrial uses.
A senior GMDA official said according to the national standards, per capita water consumption is around 150 litres, of which 20 litres are for potable uses, while the rest is for non-potable uses such as horticulture and flushing. From this perspective, there is an immense scope for the government to increase the use of treated water, especially in a place like Gurgaon — a dark zone.
The survey will be carried out in all residential, industrial, commercial and government buildings. All government departments have also been asked to give the figures on the potable water being used by them now.
Additionally, the departments have to also submit a performa stating the amount of treated water they may use by 2025 and 2030 respectively.
According to a GMDA official, the development authority’s main objective is to bring down the use of potable water. This will not only reduce the city’s dependency on recycled water, but also help stop the exploitation of groundwater. Talking about the initiative, Kundu further said, “This is the first meeting held to discuss this, and there will be follow-up meetings every month to study the progress.”
As of now, GMDA is already providing around 260 MLD of treated water for reuse, of this around 200 MLD is being supplied for micro-irrigation purposes in Jhajjar where the remaining amount is being supplied within the city for maintaining parks, stadiums and green belts. GMDA has three STPs. Besides GMDA, MCG is also reusing at least 200 KLD treated water for the maintenance of parks and green belts. MCG treats this water at eight micro-STPs installed at various places.
According to the DTCP’s norms, it is also mandatory for all condominiums to set up micro-STPs in their complexes and use that water for non-drinking purposes. However, several of these STPs are lying defunct, even those within government buildings.
The meeting was also attended by developers, including DLF and Vatika, who elaborated their efforts in groundwater conservation.
