Water supply plan mooted for Shimla

An ambitious water supply scheme has been planned to meet the needs of this popular resort town in Himachal Pradesh for the next 100 years.

The water will be brought from the high mountains of Chanchal by tapping the icy Pabbar river, a tributary of the Yamuna in Shimla district some 200 away from here.

"The Pabbar water scheme will cost about Rs600 crore as water will have to be brought in by a 200 km pipeline with the help of gravity," said Kaul Singh, the state irrigation and public health minister.

"The state government will outsource the detailed project report of the water scheme and later float global tenders to build the ambitious project."

In recent years the water crisis has worsened due to rapid growth of the population along with the arrival of holiday makers round the year. The civic authorities are able to supply 65 lakh litres of water during the peak period while the demand is around 80 lakh litres daily.

"Once the ongoing Giri river(another water scheme for Shimla) and the more ambitious Pabbar river schemes are completed, we hope to meet the needs of Shimla for the next 100 years," said Singh.

This erstwhile British summer capital was built for the needs of 25,000 people, but more than half a century later the population has swelled to around 1.75 lakh. The regular arrival of holiday makers has not helped matters.

In summer, as the tourist rush increases so does the demand for water supply. Many of the 500 or so hotels are forced to transport water from far-off places to meet their needs.