Hyderabad, Oct 19 Telangana Chief Secretary Sanjay Jaju on Monday directed officials to prepare micro-level contingency plans to prevent shortages of drinking water and electricity due to the impact of El Niño.
Jaju held a video conference with the senior officials appointed by the government to oversee the situation in the districts and reviewed conditions arising from El Niño and the resultant rainfall deficit, a press release said.
He said the state government had already prepared department-wise contingency plans to deal with the severe conditions expected due to El Niño and was issuing instructions from time to time.
Similar plans should be prepared at the grassroots level, he added.
Electricity generation in the state had been below expectations, Jaju said, but the government was continuing to supply power for agricultural and domestic needs. No power cuts were being imposed on industries, and managements need not worry about supply, he said.
All government offices had been instructed to use electricity economically, he said.
Air conditioners should be operated at 25 degrees Celsius, and only when necessary, during the daytime, and their use should be reduced significantly after 6 pm, Jaju added.
He directed officials to ensure maximum power generation at all thermal power stations in the state.
The five special officers assigned to the Yadadri Thermal Power Station were told to take dedicated measures to maximise production at the facility.
YTPS is a 4,000 MW coal-fired power plant located at Veerlapalem in Dameracherla mandal.
Jaju said an all-party meeting would be held soon to explain the impact of El Niño, and a Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting would be convened shortly.
Officials from the Energy department said water was being drawn illegally from local sources for agricultural use through dedicated motor pumps. This excessive withdrawal was increasing the electrical load and causing local transformers to burn out, they said.
Officials said water was not available from the Manjeera and Singur reservoirs, which normally supply 110 million gallons per day (MGD). The shortfall was being met from alternative sources, including 60 MGD from Mission Bhagiratha and additional supplies from the Krishna river and other sources.
Mission Bhagiratha is the flagship safe drinking water project of the Government of Telangana, launched in 2016.
Special Chief Secretary Jayesh Ranjan said permission to drill borewells in Hyderabad should be granted only for drinking water and in accordance with regulations.
No new borewells should be permitted for construction or other activities, he said, adding that permission was being given only to deepen existing borewells exclusively for drinking water.
Ranjan said a special enforcement drive was under way in Hyderabad, in coordination with Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) and other agencies, to identify and remove illegal motor pumps fitted to municipal water taps to draw excessive quantities of water.
From November 1, treated water from Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) would be supplied to construction sites in Hyderabad through green water tankers, he said.
Special Chief Secretary Vikas Raj said groundwater levels in Rangareddy district were declining significantly, and alternative plans were being prepared and implemented to ensure there was no shortage of drinking water, the release added.
El Niño, the warm phase of a natural climate cycle, raises sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific, triggering weather changes that can increase the risk of droughts and floods and intensify human-induced global warming.
(PTI News)
