Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, today approved a mega drinking water project for Sambalpur city.

The drinking water project will be executed with an expenditure of Rs 382 crore. A private entity from Thane in Maharashtra has been assigned the work thorough bidding process, said Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja while briefing the media soon after the Cabinet meeting.

“The present population of Sambalpur city is 4.75 lakh. As per the projection, the Western Odisha city will have 7 lakh population by 2043. The state Cabinet has approved the drinking water project to provide round-the-clock water supply to the residents of Sambalpur,” added the Chief Secretary.

The project will help provide 24X7 water supply of ‘Drink from Tap’ quality to all households of Sambalpur, Hirakud and Burla towns as per the Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO) guideline, revealed the Chief Secretary.

According to Ahuja, an intake well with 110 million litre per day (MLD) capacity will be constructed at Hirakud dam as part of the drinking water project.

The project will have two conventional water treatment plants at Tipupada (65 MLD) and Burla (35 MLD) and at least three self-water lubricated vertical turbine sets, he said.

Besides, six centrifugal pump sets will be installed as part of the project. The construction work of the project is scheduled to begin on September 1 this year. A target has been set to complete the project by August 31, 2027, added the Chief Secretary.