Commissioner/Secretary AK Sahu reviewed the status of DPRs for 24x7 Water Supply in Leh and Kargil towns, being implemented by the UT Administration to make the urban areas of Ladakh water secure and provide universal coverage of water supply.

TATA Consulting Engineering Limited and Shah Technical Consultants will be preparing the DPRs for Leh and Kargil towns respectively. They presented their proposals in the presence of the Director, Housing & Urban Development, CE PHE/I&FC, SE PHE, Leh & Kargil, EE PHE Leh & Kargil, and PMU HUDD.

24X7 water supply involves best management practices and would be very useful to ensure the supply of water even during the extreme winters as it requires maintaining minimum pressure in the pipeline. It also ensures no leakages and wastage of water.

The urban areas are not covered under the flagship scheme of the Jal Jeevan Mission which is already being implemented in rural areas of Ladakh. Thus, UT Administration decided to take up 24X7 water supply scheme to cover the urban areas. Presently, only a small portion of both towns are covered with tap water connections however problems transpire during winter. Due to the rise in commercial activities, people have started drawing underground water unauthorized causing a threat to the groundwater. In such a scenario a 24X7 water supply scheme for urban areas would be a great relief for the people of Ladakh. 
  
The project will be sourcing water from natural resources such as springs and glacial streams and sub-surface water from near the river streams etc by laying down distribution lines through the township in trenches. 

Commissioner Sahu urged the concerned departments to work in coordination for the best utilization of the resources and plan the trenches in a manner that will be collectively used by the departments of PDD, MC, telecom companies, etc.
 
While discussing the estimated water consumption of the city per day, Commissioner Sahu stressed that the estimated consumption of the commercial establishments and the requirement of the floating population must be considered while projecting the future requirement.
 
Further, for a better understanding of groundwater consumed through bore wells, Commissioner Sahu directed the PHE Department for detailed mapping of bore wells dug in Leh and Kargil cities, including government, private and commercial establishments. 
 
Deliberations were also held on the selection of pipes, where Commissioner Sahu stated that temperature resistance must be a selection criterion and urged the agencies to take the help of technical agencies for appraisal of pipe material before finalizing.
 
Commissioner Sahu also reviewed the status of the DPR of Storm Water Drainage in both towns. He stressed the scientific planning of stormwater drainage systems considering the previous major floods and probable disaster situations. He asked the agencies to complete the DPRS at the earliest and submit it for tendering by or before March 2023.