Cuttack: The Public Health Engineering Organisation (Pheo) on Saturday decided to restrict the placement of plastic tanks at different places for additional drinking water supply to 76 locations, changing its summer action plan.

In March, the Pheo had planned to supply additional drinking water for possible fall in water levels, which results in a decline in flow of piped water.

According to that plan, plastic tanks were to be placed where there is no supply through pipelines, along with additional plying of water tankers to meet the demand.

The Pheo officials said they had initially targeted to place 1,000-litre tanks at 130 locations to provide additional drinking water covering all 59 wards under the Cuttack Municipal Corporation.

Pheo (Cuttack division) executive engineer Sushant Ghadei said that by Friday, plastic tanks had been placed at 76 locations.

"After taking stock of the action plan's progress, we decided not to place any more tanks in areas covered by piped water," Ghadei said. "Accordingly, 54 locations selected earlier were dropped."

To provide uninterrupted drinking water through the 76 tanks, 16 tankers have been pressed into service, he said.

A Pheo official said this apart, the public water supply system includes 3,419 tube wells and 2,028 stand posts.

Supply of drinking water by placing tanks in various locations was started after the Cuttack Municipal Corporation discontinued the opening of water kiosks that provide drinking water to people from earthen pots during summer (known in local parlance as jala chhatras) last year.

However, this year, the civic body has entered into agreements with banks to come up with jala chhatras during summer.

Chairman of the civic body's standing committee for health, sanitation and water supply Ranjan Kumar Biswal said: "We have tied up with the State Bank of India and ICICI Bank to open the jala chhatras for the public this summer."