Odisha to implement Rs.100 crore Rooftop Water Harvesting project

By B.Maharana
14 Jan, Bhubaneswar

Odisha Government Monday announced Rs.100 crore rain water harvesting and conservation project to ensure ground water recharge. The Water Resources Department will be the nodal agency for the implementation of the project through the Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting System in the urban areas.
According to Water Resources Secretary Pradeep Kumar Jena , the project would be implemented during the next five years and in the first phase pilot projects would be taken up in Bhubaneswar, Berhmapur, Jharsuguda, Titilagarah and Brajarajnagar. The Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting system would be installed on 16405 private and 550 Government buildings in the first phase, he said.
The main objective is to check wastage of rain water and to raise the water table at a time when the availability of drinking water is becoming acute, Jena said.
The decision was taken at a high level meeting held at the state Secretariat under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik .
Jena said that that the implementation of the rooftop water harvesting project would be mandatory for all the newly built Government and private buildings in the urban areas and a circular to this effect would be issued soon.
The government will provide subsidy up to 50 percent of the project cost or Rs.45,000 to the private building owners for a built up area of less than 2150 sqr.feet, said Jena.
He said the Water Resources Department would provide technical support for the installation of the rooftop Rain Water Harvesting system . Unemployed Graduate engineers , Diploma Engineers , Agriculture , Civil and Environment Engineers would be given training to become consultants for the projects and they would be empanelled with the Water Resources Department, he said.
Rainwater harvesting involves collection, filtering and use of rainwater, which falls on the rooftop (terrace or tiled roof) and in the portico of the house.