Ranchi's civic guardians will dispatch from Saturday notices to all government and semi-government offices, private and state-run schools, among others, directing them to set up rainwater harvesting structures latest by June 22 in the wake of a recent Jharkhand High Court order.

"Municipal commissioner Prashant Kumar signed the letters today (Friday) and we will start mailing them from tomorrow (Saturday)," said executive engineer, RMC water board, Pramod Bhatt.

Setting up groundwater recharge structures is mandatory according to provisions under the RMC Rainwater Harvesting Regulation-2016. It is applicable to all government, semi-government and private establishments across the capital city.

In case of violation, the RMC can charge an additional 1.5 times of the original holding tax from defaulters, Bhatt pointed out.

On May 18, the high court took strong exception to violation of building bylaws vis-à-vis water conservation, and directed the state to ensure that all government buildings across Jharkhand put in place rain harvesting structures within the given deadline.

Earlier, the RMC had directed owners of residential and commercial buildings to complete self-assessment and submit details of their properties, including specifications on harvesting structures, between June 1 and August 31.

The civic body has roped in, through expressions of interest, 12 private agencies to help equip all government, semi-government and private buildings with the structures.

"The capital is facing acute water crisis, and recharging groundwater has become imperative. So, the RMC has hired agencies having expertise in installing harvesting structures. They are equipped with modern technology and know-how. Departments as well as individuals can take help from any of these empanelled agencies by paying consultation charges. But, it is not mandatory to take services of these agencies," an official said.

The RMC has also uploaded on its website specifications for harvesting structures in various types of buildings, depending on their carpet area, and mentioned estimated cost of construction.

The corporation has set up a monitoring cell, headed by Bhatt, which will carry out surprise inspections across the city to check whether rainwater harvesting is being done and if the structures meet technical specifications laid down by the civic body.