City builder installs smart water meters to track individual flat consumption | Mangaluru News

Mangaluru: A city-based builder is installing individual smart, sensor-based water meters in every flat of their upcoming project near Attavar. This development marks a significant departure from traditional centralised water systems, which offer no means to track per-flat usage.The technology aims to provide residents with unprecedented insight into their water consumption, encouraging more responsible use in a city where individual daily consumption far exceeds national recommendations. The smart water meters will be installed at Mohtisham Amity Apartments, which is already functional with a few flats occupied.Traditionally, water provision was centralised, with no means to track usage per flat. Based on their previous project, where smart meters were installed on each apartment floor, builders discovered that an individual uses approximately 400 to 500 litres of water daily, significantly higher than India’s standard recommendation of 135 litres per person per day, including flushing, drinking, cooking, bathing, and others. CREDAI president, Vinod AR Pinto, explained that the new initiative will feature multiple sensor-based, smart water meters within each flat, which is coming up near Attavar. These meters will monitor the flow of fresh water in kitchens and washrooms, as well as treated water used solely for flushing and gardening purposes. This system will provide a clear understanding of each flat’s daily water consumption and aid in identifying ways to reduce excessive water use, as the average consumption is four times the recommended amount. The meters have been designed and patented.When asked why a single apartment will have a lot of meters and if it is affordable, Pinto said that as per the building design, an apartment will have several water supply pipes, including STP treated water to each apartment. Therefore, there need to be several meters in a single apartment for measurement. According to builders, the smart meters will be able to give an accurate bill to each apartment based on their consumption. “In a traditional setting, the water bill was equally divided into the total number of apartments. There could be many who likely use less water but had to pay the same amount. This can be avoided. Also, many will be cautious about their water usage. This will help in saving more water. Once implemented, we will generate the data and share it with MCC, CREDAI, and other stakeholders to come up with a policy which would further reduce water consumption,” he added.