Bhanjanagar: The supply of drinking water to this town as well as irrigation facilities in its vicinity may suffer very shortly. This is because the water reservoir in this locality of Ganjam district has dried up considerably in the last couple of years due to insufficient rainfall. It has been particularly scanty since September 15, last year.
Officials informed that the reservoir currently has only 25 per cent water of its total capacity. This town requires 35 lakh liters of drinking water for its inhabitants, most of which comes from the reservoir.
However, shortly there is ample chance for disruption of water supply. Lack of rainfall has not only affected the reservoir that supplies water to this town but also the one at Landesisahi village. The reservoir at the village situated on the outskirts of this town has also seen a substantial drop in water level. It is apprehended that if the situation persists then the drinking water supply as well as irrigation will be severely hit.
Unless the water level goes up, farmers in the Rabi season may experience crop losses, people in the know of things pointed out. The low rainfall for the last couple of years is also causing another headache for the local administration. They are apprehensive that in case of a forest fire, there will not be sufficient water to douse the flames. When contacted, Nityananda Behera, assistant engineer of Bhanjanagar Public Health Department (PHD) said that the area might experience a problem in drinking water supply if rainfall does not occur soon.
He, however, pointed out that steps will be taken to avert the crisis and added that efforts are on to assess the volatility of the situation. Forest officer of North Ghumusar division, Sudarshan Behera said it will be a challenge for the department to check forest fires if rainfall does not occur quickly. However, steps are being taken in advance so that forest fires can be prevented from the beginning of summer.