The workshop was organised by the builders’ associations, Naredco Telangana and Credai Hyderabad, with officials, builders and developers and residential communities on Thursday.
HYDERABAD: With the city likely to face water stress in the summer, officials at a workshop on El-Nino contingency planning and water conservation, urged builders, developers and residential communities to make greater use of treated sewage water from sewage treatment plants (STPs) for construction, landscaping, parks and other non-drinking purposes.
The workshop was organised by the builders’ associations, Naredco Telangana and Credai Hyderabad, with officials, builders and developers and residential communities on Thursday.
The city has 45 operational STPs with a combined treatment capacity of 1,878 million litres per day (MLD), generating around 1,500 MLD of treated water. However, only about seven MLD is currently being utilised.
HMWS&SB managing director K. Ashok Reddy urged builders to use treated water for construction instead of depending on drinking water and groundwater. He said the board had introduced the Dial-a-Green-Tanker initiative to supply treated water for landscaping and other non-domestic requirements through an online booking facility.
He also flagged concerns over private STPs that were not operational or were not being utilised to their full capacity. Residential communities and large developments with surplus treated water should reuse it or make it available for other purposes, he said.
GHMC commissioner R.V. Karnan said the corporation would ensure treated water was used for parks, road medians, plantations and greenery. He urged developers to reuse treated water from their own STPs for construction projects.
Medchal-Malkajgiri corporation commissioner T. Vinay Krishna Reddy said buildings under construction required around 24 MLD of water daily, according to a corporation assessment. Shifting these requirements to treated water could significantly reduce pressure on fresh-water sources.
Cyberabad municipal commissioner G. Srijana called for long-term changes in water management, including rainwater harvesting and responsible household consumption. HYDRAA commissioner A.V. Ranganath stressed the need to prevent unauthorised groundwater extraction, particularly around lakes.
