Dhaka: Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority (Dwasa) has taken three mega projects involving Tk 13,347 crore, aiming to increase its surface water supply to 70 percent from the existing 22 percent by 2021.  

The three projects are-- Padma (Jasholdia) Water Treatment Project, Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project and Sayedabad Water Treatment Project (Phase-3).

According to official Dwasa documents and information obtained by UNB, the Tk 3500 crore Padma (Jasholdia) Water Treatment Project has been taken to supply 45 crore litres of water a day from the Padma River. The project will be completed by June 2018. The government is implementing the project with financial help from Chinese Exim Bank.  

The Tk 5250-crore Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project is expected to supply 50 crore litres of water from river Meghna.  

This project will be completed by December 2019. The government is implementing the project with financial help from Asian Development Bank, European Investment Bank and French Development Agency (Agence Française de Développement) (AFD).

Of the amount, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing US$ 250 million, while the European Investment Bank 100 million Euro, AFD 74 million Euro and the rest will come from the national exchequer.

Sayedabad Water Treatment Project (Phase-3) is being implemented at a cost of Tk 4597 crore to supply 50 crore litres of water from the Meghna River. The AFD and Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) are providing financial assistance for the project which will be completed by June 2021, as per the official document.

Currently, Dwasa is supplying 22 percent water of its total supply through four water treatment plants while its 708 deep tube-wells provide 78 percent of its total water supply.

Dwasa now has the capacity to supply 242 crore litres of water a day against the demand for 230 crore litres.

‘But, overusing underground water is not environmentally viable. That's why we're gradually moving towards the use of surface water,’ a senior Dwasa official told UNB.

Besides, Chittagong Wasa has taken three projects to increase its supply of surface water instead of lifting underground water.

The projects are-- Karnaphuli Water Supply Project, Chittagong Water Supply Improvement and Sanitation Project and Karnaphuli Water Supply Project (Phase-2).

With the Tk 1510 crore Karnaphuli Water Supply Project, which is assisted by JICA, 143 million litres of water will be supplied from the Karnaphuli River. The progress of this project, which has three packages, is 88.16 percent. According to the official document, the project will be completed by December next.

With the Tk 1078 crore Chittagong Water Supply Improvement and Sanitation Project, funded by the World Bank, Chittagong Wasa will supply 90 million litres of water from the Halda River every day. The work on this project is going on and will be completed by December 2018.

Through the JICA-funded Tk 4491 crore project, 143 million litres of water will be supplied from the Karnaphuli River and this project will be completed by January 2022.