Jhumpura: Crores of rupees are being spent to provide safe drinking water to rural people under the Swajaladhara Yojana and Basudha Yojana, but safe drinking water still remains a dream for people in many forested villages under Jhumpura block in Keonjhar.
According to reports, though there are tube wells and solar-powered water projects in Basantpur, Nayagad, Malda and Kutugaon panchayats, most of them have either gone defunct or deliver dirty stinking water.
Villagers alleged that overhead tanks are not cleaned for years while tanks at some places are lidless. “Water is unfit for drinking,” rued locals.
Unable to get safe water, people are bound to drink water from nearby streams or pits.
On the other hand, consumption of contaminated water has resulted in multiple diseases in people.
As villages are in remote forested areas, the authorities do not come to repair the defunct drinking water projects nor clean the tanks.
People of Brahmanijhari and Penteisahi in Basantpur panchayats alleged that tanks are not being clorinised.
With temperatures soaring, water crisis has deepened in these tribal-dominated pockets.
Leaving aside their work, tribal women trek miles to collect drinking water. The tribal residents lamented that collecting water is a daily struggle. “For water, we have been struggling to save our lives in the summer days,” rued some villagers.
“In such situation, we are bound to drink dirty water from the stream,” they rued.
When contacted, executive engineer of the RWSS, Dayanidhi Sahu said that overhead water tanks will be cleaned.
PNN