24x7 Godavari water soon for Vizag’s Madhurawada under ₹725-crore project

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An aerial view of Mudasarlova Reservoir in Visakhapatnam, where the pipeline bringing Godavari water under the new supply project will end. The reservoir filled up after heavy rain last week. | Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak

Madhurawada, where many apartment complexes get municipal water only once in two or three days, is to get Godavari water round the clock. Work on the ₹725.18-crore 24x7 drinking water supply system for Visakhapatnam’s fast-growing northern corridor is likely to begin in October, the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) said.

Tenders have been opened, and the Chief Minister recently laid the foundation stone for the project. It is meant to bring relief to residents, high-rise apartment dwellers and the IT companies that have long struggled with intermittent supply in this rain-fed zone.

A long pipeline network is being mapped out to carry Godavari water into the local grid. Raw and treated water will travel from Yeleru to KBR, move on through Meghadrigedda and a designated village in Pendurthi, and finally flow into the Mudasarlova reservoir.

Explaining the project and its latest progress, GVMC Commissioner Ketan Garg said the interconnected pipeline would not only feed Madhurawada directly with Godavari water but also ease the heavy burden now on the Gosthani river, securing a dependable source for the entire region.

“With administrative formalities progressing rapidly and tenders officially opened, civil works for the project are expected to kick off by October. Designated with an 18-month execution window toward a comprehensive commercial operation date by April 2029, the initiative forms a core part of infrastructural upgrades leading up to 2028,” Mr. Garg told The Hindu.

He said the GVMC was prioritising the schedule so that the change from erratic local supply to a continuously pressurised smart water network happened quickly, keeping pace with the area’s rapid real estate and commercial growth.

The project comes under the Centre’s Urban Challenge Fund (UCF) and is funded three ways: a UCF grant of ₹181.29 crore (25%), a GVMC contribution of ₹181.29 crore (25%) and a term loan of ₹362.59 crore (50%) at 9% a year, repayable by September 2041. Designed to serve an initial population of 2.5 lakh in Phase 1, it includes a 65 MLD water treatment plant, a 417-km distribution network, 7,900 KL of storage and 37,407 smart meter connections, backed by SCADA, district metered areas, GIS mapping and integration with the City Operations Centre, he added.

Mr. Garg said solving the chronic water shortage in the rain-fed Madhurawada zone remained a top priority.

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