Thiruvananthapuram: In the wake of annual water shortage and dipping water table levels, the district administration will make rainwater harvesting pits compulsory in all households in the district by May 31 ahead of the south-west monsoon. District collector K. Vasuki told reporters here that no new permits will be issued to houses on plots above 200 square meters unless the owner installs water harvesting facilities based on section 109 (A) of Kerala Municipality Building Rules 1999. The percolation pits will have to be at least two square metres.
Similarly, in the existing households, the owners will have to make pits to prevent water flowing out of their premises unless their plot is on a 20-degree slope. A detailed order in this regard will be released on Wednesday, she said. “The disaster management committee, based on various recommendations, including the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation’s Hazard Vulnerability Assessments Report (HVAR), has decided to ensure percolation pits in houses. The idea is to have some mechanism in every house to let maximum rainwater seep into the ground,” said Ms Vasuki.
The rule will apply to apartments also. Meanwhile, the revenue and corporation officials said that they were awaiting more clarity on specifications of pits in the existing households. “Usually, any house on a 200 square-metre plot will have space for a percolation pit if it is constructed with sufficient clearance from the compound wall,” said a building inspector.
The standard rain pits dug by the district panchayat are usually 2x2x2 feet only. District panchayat president K. Madhu said that the well-recharging mechanism was being installed in all schools and primary health centres (PHC) in the capital. The rain harvesting mechanism will be installed on government office premises also. All the works will be undertaken under Haritha Kerala mission. Around 1500 new farm ponds were dug up and thousands of rainwater pits will be made in the district during March and April.
