The Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board has started the process of handing over the operation and maintenance (O&M) of the Pillur-III drinking water supply scheme to the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC). This marks a significant development in managing one of Coimbatore’s largest drinking water projects.
The Rs 779-crore Pillur-III scheme, which became operational in 2024, provides approximately 178 million liters of drinking water daily to various parts of Coimbatore. Despite the TWAD Board completing the project, the O&M period concluded nearly six months ago.
During the interim period, the Board has been overseeing the scheme while awaiting its formal transfer to the civic body. Coimbatore Corporation had requested additional time to take on the project’s responsibility due to Assembly election-related tasks and other administrative duties.
Following the completion of these commitments, the TWAD Board has officially communicated with the corporation to commence the handover process. Coimbatore Corporation Commissioner Katta Ravi Teja recently inspected the facilities at the Pillur dam and proposed forming a technical committee to conduct a thorough assessment of the scheme before the official transfer.
After inspection, the committee will present its findings to the Tamil Nadu Director of Municipal Administration (DMA), Thiru. S. Sivarasu, for review. Subsequently, approval will be sought from the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department. The transfer process is anticipated to conclude in August.
Once the handover is finalized, the Coimbatore Corporation will be responsible for managing the scheme’s key infrastructure, such as pipelines, pumping stations, and storage tanks. However, the 178-MLD water treatment plant will remain under the TWAD Board’s control.
Under the project agreement, the TWAD Board will operate and maintain the treatment plant for ten years before transferring it to the corporation. As three years have already passed, the treatment plant will remain under TWAD’s supervision for an additional seven years. Coimbatore currently receives water from various reservoirs, including Siruvani and Pillur, as well as the Aliyar dam.
The TWAD Board manages Pillur-I and Pillur-III, while the Coimbatore Corporation oversees Pillur-II. The transfer is deemed necessary as the TWAD Board has exceeded the agreed operational and maintenance period, prompting the civic body to assume the day-to-day management of the water supply scheme.
