Ganga canal shutdown from October 21 may disrupt water supply in Noida and Ghaziabad

More than 20 lakh people in Noida and Ghaziabad could see water supply disruptions when the Upper Ganga Canal closes for desilting from October 21 to November 25.

The annual work covers a 195-km stretch from Haridwar to Dasna. The irrigation department says silt builds up after the monsoon and restricts the canal’s flow. Work this year will also include raising the canal floor by 50cm near the bathing ghat at Chhota Haridwar in Muradnagar to help prevent drowning incidents.

In Ghaziabad, Ganga water serves trans-Hindon neighbourhoods including Indirapuram, Vaishali, Kaushambi, Vasundhara, Siddharth Vihar, Pratap Vihar and Surya Nagar. The canal supplies three UP Jal Nigam treatment plants, with much of their output allocated to Noida.

Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation said it will use 70 large and 36 small borewells in Vasundhara, along with 26 borewells in Indirapuram. It plans to deploy 64 water tankers where piped supply networks are unavailable. GMC has 372 MLD of water available against demand of about 419 MLD, and says roughly 35% of supplied water is lost through pipeline leakages.