Cuttack, July 16: The Public Health Engineering Organisation (Pheo) has started the process of extending the drinking water supply network to all areas under the civic body.

Pheo has taken up the project that will connect uncovered areas with new pipelines under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (Amrut) scheme.

At present, 44 of the 59 wards under the jurisdiction of the municipal corporation are fully covered by pipe water networks, while the rest are partially covered.

"At present, the drinking water network is around 551km. The project targets an additional 310km in two years," Pheo's Cuttack division executive engineer Sushant Ghadei told The Telegraph today.

"A project to have a water supply distribution network equal to the city's road network (810km) is already on the table for drawing up the expenditure estimate. Tenders for the work will follow," Ghadei said. The new pipelines will be laid in phases with funds under the Amrut scheme sanctioned in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 fiscals.

At present, Pheo provides 102.9 million litres daily (MLD) against a demand of 101 MLD. But 25 per cent of the water supplied is wasted because of leakage. The new pipeline project will bump up distribution to 129 MLD.

"Parts of Jagatpur, Nimpur, Telengapenth, Pratapnagari, Gopalpur, Chauliaganj, Gandarpur, Sutahat, Tuasipur, Kazi Bazaar, Mehendipir, Kafla, Dagarpada, Ramgarh, Stewart Patna and Srivihar Colony will benefit from the new pipelines," said Ranjan Kumar Biswal, chairman of the municipal corporation's standing committee for water supply and sanitation.

Pheo is also replacing old pipelines in the city under the Amrut scheme. The replacement project was undertaken last September along with a survey of the existing pipelines. It has set a target of replacing a 98.65km pipeline network.

"So far, we have replaced around 68km and expect to complete the entire project by the end of September," Ghadei said.

He said Pheo would spend Rs 34 crore on replacement of the old water distribution pipelines. These pipelines are being substituted, especially in the older parts of the municipal corporation limits where most of the pipelines have already outlived their service period.

In Cuttack, more than half the pipelines were installed two to three decades ago. These old and rusty pipelines needed immediate replacement with frequent outbreaks of water-borne diseases, including jaundice, which has wreaked havoc in the city in the past few years.

The government had initiated the old pipeline replacement project after the problem became more pronounced in recent years.

On July 31 last year, chief minister Naveen Patnaik laid the foundation stone for the project to address the problem of old pipelines that led to contamination of drinking water, putting the health of residents at risk.