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Rapid Depletion of Water Resources

Formulation of master plan for Dhaka to start in November

Star Report
As a high level of ground water consumption is rapidly depleting Dhaka's water resources, the government will start formulating a master plan for Dhaka water supplies from November.
Dhaka is facing a water shortage of about 500 million litres per day (mld)over 25 percent of the existing demand. This shortage will hit 1500 mld in 2015 if no action is initiated now.
From November, the government will begin a yearlong $1.25 million fact finding technical mission with the assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) that will chalk out a master plan, according to an ADB aide memo.
This plan aims not only to identify new water resources but also to outline how to improve the city's water distribution. On the basis of its outcomes, the ADB will provide a loan in early 2007 to improve the water infrastructure of the capital.
The fact-finding mission will also recommend designs and setting up of new tubewells and rehabilitation of old ones. Besides, the ADB and the World Bank will assist the government on the institutional improvement of the Dhaka Water Supply Authority (DWASA).
According to the aide memo, Dhaka's present population of 12 million is growing at an unconfirmed annual rate of over 5 percent. DWASA estimates that it serves safe water supply to about 75 percent of the population.
An estimated 5.5 million people receive piped water and half a million people have access to piped water via stand posts.
However, 3 million people who live in slums obtain the bulk of their water supply legally or illegally from Wasa.
About 82 percent of water comes from ground reservoirs and 18 percent from surface water. Large-scale abstraction of ground water has led to a continuos fall of the water level. To cope with this problem, Wasa continued to drill new deep tubewells, which increased from 140 in 1990 to over 400 in 2005. As a result, several wells have dried up at a much faster rate than previously experienced.
The majority of the distribution system is weak due to an intermittent water supply, leakage, and ingress of pollution from sewage pipes and storm drains. As a result, the rate of water borne diseases is high among the city dwellers.
Institutionally weak, DWASA barely meets its operational and maintenance expenses from the revenue it generates from the water tariff.
Unauthorised connections, leakages in the system, inadequate operation and maintenance, poor quality of metering and meter reading, as well as under-billing eat up 50 percent of the revenue.
On top of this, low collection efficiency has increased the receivables to around 13 months, which is extremely high by any standard. The ADB believes that, the financial and managerial powers of Dwasa need to be expanded to recover outstanding dues from government agencies without political interference. Critical institutional reforms and the active participation of the private sector are mandatory to future investment.