"Automatic machines have been set up for production, refining and bottling. It would ensure hygienic, purified and quality water for consumers," said Hedayet Ullah Al-Mamun acting managing director, Dhaka Wasa. "We would start test production from the last week of this month (July)."

Shanti, the brand name for the Wasa bottled water will be available in the market on the first week of August.

The new plant established at a cost of Tk 13 crore is capable of producing 10,000 litres of pure water per hour.

"The plant has the capacity of bottling 6000 litres of water per hour. Rest of the water would be supplied in reusable containers of 10 litre and 20 litre," said Al-Mamun.

Wasa has decided to market bottles containing 500 millilitres (ml), 1 litre, 2 litre and 5 litre of water.

A new deep tube-well has been set up to collect water from the ground level. The plant will also manufacture plastic bottles required to carry water to the market.

"We have called tenders for marketing agents and will complete the other procedures like getting standard certificate and fixing prices within middle of this month," said the acting MD.

He also said that the technical set up is complete and that Wasa had established the plant on its own land in Mirpur.

Wasa hopes to lease the plant out for operation and maintenance to some private operator.

"We will hold the quality controlling authority and marketing in our hands to ensure quality product and maximum benefit for Wasa," said the MD.

Wasa officials also said that the water they provide would be priced lower than the existing market rate, but they have not set a price as yet.

"One of our main goals is to supply pure drinking water to the market at a very minimal price so that the other companies charging a higher rate for the same kind of product are forced to reduce their rate," said an official of Wasa.

"In principle we have decided to sell our bottled water at 30 to 40 percent lower rate than that of existing market price," he added.

Wasa bottled water was expected to be available in the market in January this year.

The initial project procedures, such as floating tenders, took over three years from early 2000 during the tenure of the previous government. Two more years later, in May 2005 Paragon Enterprise Limited was awarded the contract to set up the plant.

"Wasa handed over the land for development late and it took us time to pile and fill up the wetland and it was only after that we started construction," said Azharul Islam, executive director, Paragon Enterprise Limited.