Chennai: Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami today said water will be brought from Jolarpettai in Vellore district and supplied to Chennai in the next two weeks.
Speaking to mediapersons after laying foundation stone for the desalination plant at Nemmeli on East Coast Road in nearby Kanchipuram district, he said the lack of rains has made the ground water table to deplete.
He further said the project will be completed in 2021 and similar desalination projects will taken up in the coastal areas that are affected by water scarcity. “Steps are also being taken to use recycled water from companies,” he said.
Participating in the event with Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and senior Cabinet colleagues, the Chief Minister accepted the arathi after the bhoomi pooja. Palaniswami, Panneerselvam and other Ministers placed the bricks in their designated places in the pit dug at the spot where the plant is to come up.
Earlier, they paid floral tributes to a huge portrait of AIADMK’s late supremo and former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, beautifully decorated with jasmine strings and placed on the huge stage.
THE PROJECT
The Rs 1,689 crore project will supply 150 MLD water to around nine lakh residents residing in areas such as Velacheri, Palavakkam, Perungudi, Thiruvanmiyur, Karapakkam, Adyar, Besant Nagar and Sholinganallur. Pipelines will be laid over 40 km, sources said. The construction work of the project is expected to begin by the end of this month.