Leader Writer: Wangkheimayum Bhupendra Singh
Today’s sudden cloudburst comes as a much needed relief for the people of the state, and the state Public Health Engineering Department must have been amongst the first to welcome it with open arms. Even then if the rain fails to continue in the coming days, the respite would not be of much significance. The department as such has been facing quite a severe censure for the past few days from the media as well as the public against its inability to ensure supply of potable drinking water to the people of the state. Summer has just about arrived, tagging along with it all sorts of problems into the state. The summer which once used to be a pleasant experience in the state is now fill up to the brim with experiences that could leave a bitter taste in the mouth. Problems and all sorts of them seem to be making a beeline for the state. Every new day sees a new problem rise. Among the list of issues that the state is facing at the moment, the inadequate supply of potable water has become quite an issue with all the aspects of kicking up another tumultuous time for the state and its residents until the rain Gods decided to smile upon the people and their state. The rains giving the state some nervous times at this time of the year just before the arrival of the monsoon resulting in dried up water sources or bodies in the state which in turn negatively affects the supply of potable water has somewhat become an annual proceeding. The present dry spell with the scorching heat had only worsened the situation of the state. The present issues coupled with the power load shedding are giving sleepless nights to the state residents. It needs some serious thinking and acting on the part of the government and its concern department before the issue really gets out of hand. It is time for the government and its concerned department to pull their acts together and think of ways of solving the issue instead of just sitting in their desks and blaming the rain for the lack of potable water in the state. As reported earlier, a PHED source had stated that the department incurs a loss of around 30 percent water while it is being pumped from the main reservoirs due to leakages along the pipelines. Controlling this issue alone could solve half of the water issues in the state. On the part of the general public it would be all the more helpful, if we could stop large scale deforestation happening in the state which will influence the arrival or non-arrival of the monsoon in a large way. Traditional ponds and lakes should also be maintained and encouraged to lessen the hardship that the public had to undergo during the pre-monsoon season in the state every year. Unauthorised connection of water lines is something which should be handled with a mutual understanding between the public and the government department concerned. Another issue that both the public and the government can sit out together and encourage rain water harvesting. Acting on these fronts will considerably help in encountering is the water issue of the state.
On the other hand with the rains giving the state a miss for quite some time, the dry spell had not only left the state high and dry, but had also given an opportunity to some with dubious intentions of earning an extra buck at the cost of the consumers. Taking undue advantage of the scarcity of potable water in the state, certain characters had been pumping water from rivers and selling it to their customers who in all likelihood would not be realizing the source of the water. Meanwhile, even as the concerned authorities were declaring that certain water supplies have been stopped from making proper supply of water to their customers, certain staffs of a water reservoir were reportedly selling water to individuals on the sly. The IFP had reported that certain staffs of the Ningthem Pukhri water reservoir were minting money by selling water to private water carriers, even as treatments plants around Imphal and its neighbouring areas have dried up. Concerned higher officials have already expressed their assurance to take up serious action, which should be welcome by the public. However, the concern higher-ups should not end the issue with just the assurance. They should also act it out so as to earn the public’s admiration and as a warning to all erring staffs. Let us hope that both the public and the government understand the gravity of the situation at hand and do their bits to control the issue.
Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2012/04/watering-woes/