Sensors installed on tube wells to check water quality

PESHAWAR: Local Government Minister Faisal Amin Khan Gandapur on Wednesday inaugurated Supervisor Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system and Automatic Water Testing Devices installed on tube-wells run by Water and Sanitation Services Peshawar (WSSP).

In an effort to switch towards automation, the company installed first of its kind SCADA system on 46 tube-wells in the province and automatic water quality sensors to check water quality in its first phase.

The project has been implemented with financial assistance of UNICEF and technical support from University of Engineering Technology Peshawar (UET) at a cost of Rs12.9 million.

WSSP Chief Executive Officer Dr Hassan Nasir, General Manager for Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (PMER), Syed Zamirul Hassan, Zonal Manager Anwarul Haq were present on the occasion.

The PMER general manager briefed the minister on the importance and operation of SCADA which would enable WSSP automatic switching of tube-wells and get accurate data on electrical and water supply parameters.

He said the data would be saved through GSM or mobile SIM on a website and a monitoring dashboard that helps WSSP measure exact power consumption of each tube-well and quantity of water it pumps into the water supply system.

“The WSSP can also ascertain if a tube-well’s water production capacity is increasing or decreasing, enabling the company to devise a long-term plan on the basis of that data in future,” the general manager said.

The minister was also briefed on installation of automatic water quality sensors installed on six tube-wells at a cost of Rs5 million.

The general manager explained that the devices would automatically take samples from water and test its quality.

“It will instantly test water sample with less chances of error, save transport cost and timely identification of contamination,” he said. This project, too, is being implemented with financial assistance from UNICEF and technical assistance of UET.

The minister lauded the company for moving towards automation of its water supply system and said that the system would help the company to improve its services.

The minister asked other water and sanitation companies in KP to follow WSSP in modernising its services. To a question, he said that WSSP was one of the examples to prove that the government was working on policies that would strengthen departments.