Opposition Congress and BJP members on Wednesday slammed the State Government for not taking measures to resolve the water scarcity issue at a time when many of water sources are drying up and people are reeling under heat wave conditions across the State.
During a discussion on Adjournment Motion on the topic, Opposition Chief Whip Taraprasad Bahinipati and BJP leader KV Singh Deo said it has been two months now people have been braving high day time temperature. While water sources like rivers and streams have dried up, the ground water level has gone down. As a result, ponds, tube wells and dug wells have dried up, they said.
They too alleged that many of piped water projects have been defunct in rural areas and those in urban areas are causing spread of jaundice. “In such a situation, the State Government is in a deep slumber and people are now crying for drinking water across the State. The Government should immediately supply water to all households through tankers,” demanded Bahinipati.
Rural Development Minister Badrinarayan Patra refuted the Opposition’s charge. “The groundwater level has gone down this summer as it has not rained for the last seven months. To tackle the situation, the Government has already started supplying water to the people,” he said. He informed that the Government has identified 422 water scarcity pockets in 24 UlBs and set up 176 tube wells and 719 PVC water tanks to resolve the issue. Similarly, the Government has been supplying drinking water to 1, 57,158 villages/hamlets uninterruptedly.