Hyderabad 20th on bad water supply list

Hyderabad: The lack of effective measures to deal with the ongoing water crisis has earned Hyderabad the 20th position in a list of 500 global cities facing acute water shortage and poor supply conditions.

According to an international survey carried out by a group of scientific associations of the United Nations, Japan, India and others, Hyderabad is a “metropolitan city with high population but inadequate water supply.” The survey, carried in Global Environmental Change, was conducted in cities having population of more than 75 lakh. It revealed that the water issues would worsen if the water projects are not completed on time.

“If the water crisis is not dealt with effectively, then it will have cascading effect on economic conditions of the city,” said the report. Tokyo, topped the list of metropolitan cities with poor water conditions. Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Bengaluru were 2nd, 3rd, 18th and 19th respectively. There are five Indian cities in the top 20 indicating the poor water management, said experts.

Hyderabad, with a population of nearly 87 lakh, supplies about 340 million gallons of water per day (MGD) against the demand of 490 MGD. The Krishna phase III and Godavari phase I projects — which are supposed to meet the water demand of the city — were to be completed by  mid-2014, there are no signs of their completion due to money crunch and  slow paced work.

By 2031, the water demand will increase to 894 MGD with estimated increase in population to 1.26 crore. And by 2050, it would increase to 1,564 MGD with 2.6 crore population, the research estimated.