Surkhet, December 23:

The Jhupra Drinking Water Project (JDWP) has started supplying drinking water to Surkhet Valley from yesterday. “The water tank constructed at Itram was full of water last morning,” JDWP head Balaram Sharma said. “At least 2,600 water taps in ward numbers 5 to 11 of Birendranagar municipality have running water for 24 hours since yesterday,” Sharma said, adding water would be supplied to some 9,000 consumers by mid-March 2008.

“We have set a target of supplying 76 litres of water per second. However, we are now supplying only 45 litres of water per second,” he said. “Birendranagar will start getting 60,00,000 lakh litres of water daily very soon,” he added.

The project began in 2001 and 94 per cent of the work has been completed, he said, adding that Rs 25,86,90,383 will be spent on the construction.