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Title : Scarcity of drinking water in various parts of Karnataka.
SHRI G. S. BASAVARAJ (TUMKUR): Mr. Chairman, Sir, I would like to caution the Centre about the acute drinking water scarcity being faced by the people in the vast tracts of Tumkar, Kolar, Chitradurga, parts of Hassan, parts of Chikmagalur and rural and urban districts of Bengaluru. Unless this problem is tackled seriously, the above tracts are likely to be barren and drought affected in a short span of five to ten years. There are streams and tributaries that flow westwards into the sea without their full volume being harnessed for public use. Adequate water from these streams can be be harnessed by pressure tunnel process at an altitude of 915 to 920 metres from MSL without having any adverse effect on ecology and environment.
The proposed sites for such facilities can be at Madikeri, Somwarpet, Sakleshpur and Moodigere which put together can make available 90 TMC of water for drinking purposes for meeting the demands from the drought prone tracts as mentioned above and also to recharge more than 13,000 tanks and ponds. At the instance of Karnataka, the National Remote Sensing Agency, Hyderabad had undertaken an aerial survey of these streams and tributaries flowing westwards and on the feasibility of excess water getting diverted to feed the drought prone areas. The Report is lying with the Government of Karnataka.
I would like to urge upon the Centre to take up the issue with the Government of Karnataka to implement the project by offering maximum possible Central assistance for providing drinking and recharge of the ground water level.