Bhubaneswar, May 11: Getting a water connection has got simpler with the housing and urban development department exempting occupancy certificate from the list of documents to be furnished.

People can now apply to the public health engineering organisation (PHEO) with just their proof of land records or building plan approvals.

“In many cases, people staying in their ancestral houses often come to us saying that neither do they have an occupancy certificate nor the building plan approvals,” PHEO superintending engineer Chittaranjan Jena told The Telegraph. 
Jena said many residents of old areas such as Old Town, Pokhariput, Bhimatangi, Sundarpada, Jagamara, Rasulgarh, Samantarapur, Laxmisagar, Bomikhal, Rasulgarh, Nayapalli, Baramunda and Khandagiri had no building plan approval documents or occupancy certificates. Such people were facing problems while applying for water connections. These house owners have inherited the properties from their forefathers and there was no concept of certification at that time. He said if people could show the ownership documents of their parents and grandparents, they would be eligible to get water connections.

President of Kalunanda Nagar Resident Welfare Association Nrupakishore Pattanaik said: “People constructing their own houses or purchasing flats are ready with the building plan or the occupancy certificate, but this is a problem for people staying here for generations.”

Consequently, the decision of the PHEO, which is under the housing and urban development department, will help a large number of people.

“In practice, a pipeline is planned for a colony by PHEO around three to five years after the colony has been established. By the time the pipeline is actually laid, another two or three years have passed. By the time the PHEO asks people to apply for water connections, many have already made their own arrangements by digging bore wells. The PHEO should integrate its pipeline development along with the development of the colonies,” said Rabinarayan Rajguru, a resident of the city.
The PHEO superintending engineer said: “The per capita consumption of water in the city is around 125 litres a day, but the supply lines are distributing 295 litres. So, a lot of water gets wasted. People should use water judiciously and not waste it.”

Mentioning that the use of water meters is the only solution to the problem, Jena said the outskirts of Bhubaneswar were not facing acute water crisis this time. 

The water resources department has been requested to implement the rooftop harvesting in the city on a pilot basis to recharge ground water.