Water purification plant in Shyampur in limbo for last three years

RAJSHAHI, Jun 12: Due to drying up of the river Padma, supply of water to the city residents from 'Shahid AHM Kamruzzaman Water Purification Plant' installed at Shyampur on the river by Water and Sewerage Authority, Rajshahi, remained suspended for more than last three years. At the same time, pipes and machineries of the Purification Plant are getting rusted and inoperative due to deposit of sand and clay on there.
Meanwhile, WASA of Rajshahi was failing to meet the need of water of the city dwellers during the dry season as the plant remained out of service. Due to unilateral diversion of water of Padma river through Farakka barrage in India, most areas of the riverbed in Bangladesh has been dried up. As a result, there was no other option to restart the plant.
It is learnt, in 1996, Department of Public Health Engineering started to construct the Shahid AHM Kamruzzaman Water Purification Plant and the works of first unit of the plant was completed in 2002 at a cost of Tk. 205.3 million. The works of second unit was completed in 2011 at a cost of Tk 825 millions totalling Taka 1.03 billion.
In March 2, 2011, the then Mayor of Rajshahi City Corporation AHM Khairuzzaman Liton formally inaugurated the Shahid AHM Kamruzzaman Water Purification Plant.
Due to use of low quality pipes and machineries, the plant failed to operate with its full capacity from the very first day of inauguration. In July 2011, WASA authorities tried to run the Water Purification Plant with its full capacity, but the pipelines got cracked six times. As a result, the plant was running with its partial capacity. The situation deteriorated when sand deposited at the installation sites. For the last three years, the plant remained inoperative totally due to deposit of sand.
WASA authorities, however, claimed, the plant can supply 2,250 cubic litre of water per hour to the city residents when it runs to its full capacity. But, the pump of the plant never remained operative more than one hour at a stretch during full monsoon and, during the dry season, the pump remained totally inoperative due to drying up of river and deposit of sand there.
Shah Alam, Deputy Managing Director of WASA informed, the Water Purification Plant could not be kept operative for the last three years due to absence of sufficient water in the river Padma but the city dwellers are being supplied water from alternative underground sources. He further said, 10 more pumps are being installed in the city to cover need of water of city dwellers.