Tap water project targets Marunda's poor families

JAKARTA (JP): British tap water company Thames Water will provide a Rp 1 billion (US$100,000) donation to finance the installation of an 11-kilometer pipeline project in the low- income Marunda subdistrict of North Jakarta.

The company is making the donation in conjunction with its worldwide initiative for urban development organized in association with the World Bank, Thames Water's subsidiary, PT Thames Pam Jaya (TPJ), said on Friday.

"It's a kind of the company's social role," said TPJ distribution director Tony De Seta.

TPJ is a joint venture of Thames Water and city owned tap water company PDAM Jaya.

Tony said construction was scheduled to start next month and would be completed within the following three months.

Marunda was chosen for the project because its residents had not been served with clean water for years, he said.

About 75 percent of 13,000 people living in the subdistrict are considered in the low-income bracket. Most are farmers, fishermen, construction workers and merchants, according to the city administration.

Marunda, located near the Jakarta Bay, and its surrounding areas have been notorious for a lack of drinking water.

Last month, residents in neighboring Rorotan subdistrict complained of chronic drinking water shortages.

Residents there must buy drinking water transported to PDAM water tanks built there because water drawn from underground sources has proven to be brackish.

TPJ, which started operating in February, is responsible for managing and improving the eastern half of the capital's water supply.

The firm is currently serving more than 2.4 million customers.

Early this month, TPJ embarked on the installation of a 100- kilometer pipeline aimed at replacing old pipes.

The Rp 150 billion project was expected to be completed within three years. (ind)