Parsons Valley, only hope for potable water

“We are hopeful of managing the situation even if the tourist flow goes up for the next three months. Udhagamandalam Municipality’s assured water supply in the town in 80 litres a person per day. We are supplying water to 26 wards through Parsons Valley schemes every three days and once in four or five days in the other 10 wards,” claims municipal commissioner incharge and health officer V Prabakaran. 

He said that they are carrying out various works at a cost of Rs 64.5 lakh to supply drinking water for the town. “We are working on inter-connecting Parsons Valley water lines with the nearby lines in wards that are not getting water from the scheme. We are mending faulty pipelines and will be engaging three private water tankers in addition to the three water tankers of the municipality to take water to deprived areas,” he said. 

D. Prabakaran added that they will also be installing five temporary fibre tanks. While this being the ground reality, municipal authorities have not substantiation on how they will manage the show when tourist flow starts going up from mid-March to mid-June. 

As part of the water conservation measures, the municipality has also asked residents not to wash their cars or water plants with the limited drinking water they get from the municipal connection. 

“People should not use drinking water for anything other than cooking and other essential activities. Last week we disconnected a line for watering plants using sprinklers,” the commissioner incharge added.