The Vellore Corporation has installed free drinking water points at 20 identified spots within its limits for the public to quench their thirst during summer.

Corporation officials said that the initiative was mainly aimed to help residents, especially women and senior citizens, who would go to public places like market, bus terminus, commercial centres in the town where they could drink water at these water joints.

The region including interior towns like Gudiyatham, Pernambut, Sholinghur, Ambur and Walajah have been experiencing daily temperatures of around 40 degree celsius since April. Most of these towns are along the Palar river, which is completely dry. “The initiative was delayed due to enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for elections. The water points will be available for residents till June-end,” R. Lakshmanan, Commissioner, Vellore Corporation, told The Hindu.

At present, the civic body has been divided into four zones, covering 60 wards with a population of around eight lakh persons. Each zone will have at least four water points. Each syntax tank, on an average, has a capacity of 1,000 litres.

These tanks were kept at crowded stretches where public utilities like banks, ATMs, shops and government offices are located. “Free drinking water distribution points are useful as residents can avoid carrying pet water bottles. Such a facility should be made permanent with periodic quality checks of water in it,” said B. Sumathi, a resident.

Corporation officials said that water in the tanks at these spots will be refilled once every two days. Also, civic staff in coordination of residents will also monitor the water distribution points to prevent any draw of water for commercial purposes like tea stalls and roadside eateries. These water points were set up on key intersections and stretches that had CCTV cameras for surveillance.

Corporation officials said that water supply to free water distribution points will not affect regular water supply to households. Currently, the total water demand of the civic body is 81 MLD per day that covers around 1.30 lakh household connections. Apart from Otteri lake where the civic body has 24 bore wells to draw water for consumption, TWAD remains a major water source for the Corporation to meet its water needs.