KWA officers to visit ward 8 in Chittoor hit by water scarcity on September 15

Kerala Water Authority (KWA) officers are set to visit a neighbourhood in Chittoor that has been facing acute drinking water scarcity for the past several weeks. Residents of Samikalam in Chittoor said around 40 houses in ward number eight of the Cheranalloor grama panchayat have been reeling under the crisis for over a month. KWA representatives had visited the area on Friday (September 12) in an attempt to resolve the issue and are scheduled to return on Monday (September 15).

According to residents, the problem began after KWA’s annual maintenance shutdown on August 7. “There was no disruption for four days after the maintenance work. But soon, the water supply was hit. Since then, we have been facing an acute shortage of drinking water,” said Saju Thomas, a resident.

Another resident, Tiju Antony, added that the neighbourhood has been depending on tanker lorries arranged by the panchayat for the past several weeks.

Sasi V.K., a member of ward number eight, maintained that only a few houses were affected. “The supply pipes were laid several years ago and are buried several feet underground. KWA will look into the issue again on Monday,” he said.

A KWA official pointed out that there is a widening gap between the supply and demand for drinking water. “The population has increased, but the water being supplied has not. A permanent solution would be a new drinking water treatment plant. Since Samikalam lies at the tail end of the corporation’s supply network, water pressure is naturally lower here,” the official said.

He added that the disruption was caused by air blockage in the pipeline, which prevents normal flow. “Once the trapped air is cleared, water will flow freely,” he said. The official also added that residents in ward number 12 of Chittoor had faced a similar problem recently, which was resolved.