Piped water supply on the rise in Gujarat cities: Study

AHMEDABAD: A study carried out by the Centre for Water and Sanitation at CEPT University found that a majority of the cities in Gujarat are supplied piped water and now there is a need to improve water management in these cities. The study also suggested the use of water audit and metered connections to monitor the usage effectively.

The study was titled ‘Urban drinking water security in Gujarat’ and was conducted by Meera Mehta, Dinesh Mehta and Jaladhi Vavaliya. The report was published in the Journal of Social and Economic Development. On the occasion of World Water Day on March 22, 2021, experts said that the state has decreased the dependence on groundwater as the reach of Narmada canal has been extended at a cost of about Rs 47,000 crore. This has improved water supply in Gujarat and Saurashtra regions and hence improved the economic growth.

The study said that as the Government of Gujarat has now achieved water security in urban areas, now the aim is to focus on improving water management. It also added that the smaller cities with a less-than-required water supply need to be provided more water and the amount of non-revenue water (NRW) should also be brought down as more water does not necessarily convert to higher level of services to the consumers.

The researchers found that the prime reason in analysing water consumption is the lack of metres which is a necessity if the state aims to provide 24*7 water supply. They also added that the total quantum of water supply in the cities has increased but the duration of supply and number of days of water supply has not changed significantly.