At last Wasa gets a move on

Mohora Water Treatment Plant. PHOTO: STAR

Wasa installations now produce 17 crore litres a day against the demand of over 50 crore litres, sources said.

Of them, Wasa produces nine crore litres of water a day through treatment of water of the river Halda at Mohora Water Treatment Plant while the remaining eight crore litres of water come from 52 deep tube-wells sunk at different city points.

The projects are Karnaphuli Water Supply Project with a production capacity of 13.50 crore litres per day, the extended unit of Mohora Water Treatment Plant (under phase II of Mohora project) with capacity of 9 crore litres and Madunaghat Water Supply Project with capacity of 4.5 crore litres of water.

The Karnaphuli Water Supply Project will be implemented with the financial assistance of Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), sources said.

A JBIC delegation led by its Deputy Director General Yasunuri Onishi called on LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan in the capital on June 14 to implement the project that involves Tk 660 crore.

Wasa Chittagong Chief Engineer Shafiqul Islam said the meeting was very positive.

Shafiqul said "A highly-powered JBIC delegation will also arrive in Chittagong on June 25 to discuss different aspects of the project with the Wasa officials."

"After the meeting we will go for preparing the Project Concept Paper (PCP)," he said.

JBIC had already selected 30 acres of land along the river Karnaphuli at Rangunia upazila for implementation of the project, he added.

He said an agreement for loan will be signed in this regard to start the project early next year.

Besides, all is set to begin implementation of the Italian financed Madunaghat Water Supply Project within two months, said sources at Wasa. It will produce 4.5 crore litres of water daily.

The cabinet committee approved the Madunaghat Project with an estimated cost of Tk 88.23 crore in September 2003 to be completed by 2006, they said.

Moreover, implementation of the extended unit of Mohora Water Treatment Plant that will also be started soon, sources said.

A tender for the project will be floated next month and its implementation is likely to start by September, they said.

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia laid the foundation stone of Tk 197.69 crore Mohora Project (phase II) in October, 2003 to be funded by the government.

After completion of the Mohora Water Treatment Plant in 1987, a good number of projects were earmarked to meet the increasing demand.

But, apart from sinking of some deep tube-wells under several interim water supply projects, none of the earmarked projects like Madunaghat and Mohora Second unit could be implemented in the last 18 years.