The drinking water supply contract given to the Jamshedpur Utilities and Services Company (JUSCO) expires in May. The next meeting of the Mysuru City Corporation scheduled to be held in the first week of May is likely to discuss whether the MCC will itself take up the task or give the responsibility of supplying drinking water to the city to the Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board (KUWSDB) or a new board on the lines of BUWSSB will be formed to supply water.
The council meeting convened on Friday was to discuss the issue, but it was put off to May.Mayor R. Lingappa told The Hindu that the debate had to be adjourned as the officials had not come prepared with the data as expected by the council. Therefore, the officials were told to come with the comprehensive data on water distribution for the next meeting.
“They (officials) had not come with details on the expenditure, manpower, and other aspects if either the MCC or a new board takes over the water distribution task,” he added.
The contract with JUSCO had actually expired in January this year which was subsequently extended to May so that the agency completed the remaining work (as per the tripartite agreement between JUSCO, the MCC and the KUWSDB.
If water supply task is taken over from JUSCO, the MCC has to spend Rs. 2 crore every month on it. As per the contract with JUSCO, which took over the task of providing 24 x 7 water supply after signing a Rs. 161.89-crore contract, the cost incurred on supplying water (to 1.30 lakh connections) was Rs. 58 lakh, according to a note jointly issued by the MCC (Vani Vilas Water Works) and the KUWSDB recently.
Sources in the MCC said the JUSCO’s contract expires on May 31 and the MCC is bound to take a decision soon to ensure interruption-free water distribution. KUWSSB had reportedly evinced interest to take over the task from JUSCO.
During the meeting, some BJP councillors staged a protest at the council over the MCC’s indecision on water distribution and water problems in their localities.
M.V. Ramprasad, a BJP councillor, poured water on his head to vent his ire over erratic water supply.
