Manmunda: Patients and their attendants are facing acute drinking water shortage as the water project launched by the government has been lying defunct at Manmunda community health centre (CHC) in Boudh district. Angered patients and activists have reportedly threatened the administration to stage a protest if the facility did not resume soon.
Sources said the government began a water supply project in 2016 so that the visitors and attendants at the hospital can get both normal and cold water.
Construction on the project continued for some days, sources said. But since one year the project has been lying totally paralysed due to the lack of maintenance even though its construction has been finished, sources added.
The government had connected some taps from the main road along the NH-57 and premises of the hospital so that both— commuters on NH-57 and patients of the health centre can be provided with cold water through this project.
But the non-maintenance of the water project has been relegating it to a non-functionary unit. The condition exacerbated during the summer this year.
It may be mentioned here that there is no drinking water facility on the premises of the hospital. The patients have to depend upon the tube well near the hospital.
According to the patients, the water from the tube well is of very bad quality but finding no other option, they are forced to drink water from there.
The locals and the patients have expressed their resentment over this issue. The locals demanded to make the water project re-operational as soon as possible otherwise they will be bound to stage a protest.
CHC medical officer Mahendra Kumar said the project is the responsibility of the panchayat department and so they cannot do anything in this regard.
When contacted, sarpanch Minakhi Sahoo said they had been trying to contact Rural Water Supply and Sewerage department (RWSS) but the department does not answer any of their phone calls.
PNN