SHAH ALAM, 17 July: The Selangor Government, through the Selangor Water Management Board (LUAS), is maximising the use of alternative ponds in Bestari Jaya through 24-hour water pumping operations.

The Executive Councillor in charge of Youth, Sports, Infrastructure and Public Amenities, Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi, said that the move was taken in preparation for the water demand during the festive season.

However, the State Government called on all parties to always be prudent and frugal in using water during this festive season.

“It is aimed to ensure that the Sungai Selangor water quality meets the needs of the intakes and also water treatment plants (WTP), especially in the upcoming festive season.

“Although a reduction of water is expected during the early part of the festive season due to urban dwellers going home to their hometowns, water pumping operations will continue to ensure that WTPs are operating at an optimum capacity and that tanks can be filled to meet the needs of usage after the holidays,” he explained.

Yunus said this during a press conference after the Executive Councillor’s meeting yesterday.

The operation is undertaken by LUAS officers, the Selangor Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) and also Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB).

At least 20 pumps have been installed to pump water from the pond into the river.

Meanwhile, 7 more pumps are used to pump river water to the pond during high flows.

To ensure the smooth operation, without interruption, Yunus said that an operations room for the water pumping operation from alternative ponds has been established near the ponds as a centre of operations monitoring.

He added that help from the Malaysian Volunteer Department (Rela) and police has also been engaged to ensure that the safety of the staff and the operation is assured.

The Water Monitoring Committee, with the National Security Council (MSC), has sought the services of aircrafts from the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) for large scale cloud seeding operations.

“With the current hot and dry weather condition, the cloud seeding operation will be done appropriately on the advice of the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MET),” he said.

NS