Irfan Tramboo
SRINAGAR, Sept 24: With Public Health Engineering (PHE) officials out of reach for the residents of Sumbal Sonawari, the area has been left high and dry due to the scarcity of drinking water for last more than two weeks.
The locals told the Excelsior that the taps in their area have not seen the sign of water and they are being forced to call water tankers day in day out. They said that they are doing it on their own and that the concerned department is not paying any heed to their issue.
“I don’t know what is the reason behind the non-availability of water in the area for last 15 days and we are forced to bring drinking water from other places in tractor or call in water tankers,” said Ghulam Muhammad, a resident.
The residents of the area are facing hardships with regard to the washing of clothes, bathing and cooking. “The ladies used to wash the clothes in nearby canal, but that too has dried up. We have been left to fend for ourselves, with the PHE Department not paying any heed to our issue,” said another resident Bilal Ahmad.
They said that they have brought the issue to the notice of the concerned department, but the repeated complaints are falling on the deaf ears of the administration.
“We did go to the officials of the concerned department many a times, neither are they telling us what the issue is nor are they trying to resolve our problem; this is the height of letting people suffer in the times that are tough,” Ghulam Muhammad added.
The residents are getting the supply of clean drinking water 2-3 hours a day and that too is not a regular. They can get the water today, but they are not sure if they will get it tomorrow.
“There is no set schedule for it (water supply), it is all up to them; they can let us have the water today for few hours, but we cannot tell you with surety about it tomorrow; calling a tanker is also a tough job to do amid no communication,” the residents said.
The residents have appealed Governor Satya Pal Malik to pull up the concerned department and direct them to resolve their issues as soon as possible. “Now that we seem to have failed in getting the water crisis that have engulfed our area resolved, we are appealing the higher ups to look into the matter,” they demanded.
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