Bhubaneswar: The Public Health Engineering Organisation (Pheo) has roped in a Chennai-based firm to do a detailed assessment of water wastage during supply and come up with measures to check it.

In May, the Pheo had initiated process to hire a private firm and have now selected M/s Pricewaterhousecoopers Pvt Ltd to execute the job. The aim of the initiative is to reduce the loss of water and divert the same to the uncovered areas where the Pheo doesn't have water supply network.

The Pheo now supplies 295.30 million litres of water every day to households of which almost 50 per cent gets wasted during supply, indicates a primary assessment. The loss is caused by leakages in pipeline, water theft by private tankers and unauthorised connection.

Sources said the firm hired for the job would carry out the assessment using modern equipment. Once the data is compiled, the firm will again provide plans and ways to reduce the water loss.

The firm will also collaborate with the Pheo officials to conduct surprise checks on households for any unauthorised connection.

"A number of households install more taps than they are allowed and this is the primary cause of water loss," said a Pheo official.

Officials said 90 per cent of pipeline leakage is difficult to detect due to their small size and erratic positions. "The pipelines are placed underground in most places. We need modern equipment to detect the leakages at such difficult places," said Pheo superintending engineer C.R. Jena.

He said they had done an assessment of the water loss in 2015 and found around 150 million litres of drinking water going waste.

"We go and repair the leaks once we get complaints. Checking all the pipelines of the city is not a easy job," said the engineer.

With the assessment and simultaneous attempts to reduce water loss by plugging the leakages will also help avoid outbreaks of various water-borne diseases such as jaundice that is caused when drinking water in the pipelines gets contaminated through the leaks.

An official said the assessment report would be prepared in the next four months.

"It is a good move of the administration to take steps to reduce water loss. It can not only contribute to revenue generation for the government but also help avoid contamination of drinking water," said social worker Alok Mohanty.