Public Health Engineering (PHE) Minister Ramsevak Paikra on Tuesday reviewed the drinking water schemes in Raipur and Durg revenue division and called upon the officers concerned to repair the malfunctioning public drinking water facilities. The Minister reviewed the Nal-Jal schemes in Raipur, Dhamtari, Mahasamund, Gariyabandh, Balodabazar-Bhatapara, Durg, Rajnandgaon, Kawardha, Balod and Bemetara, and also checked the condition of handpumps.
Paikra said that the quality of development works completed through tenders should be maintained. He ordered the sinking of bore-wells in place of dry hand-pumps so as to the citizens do not face any drinking water shortage. The Minister ordered the officers to call for tenders to complete the Nal-Jal Schemes as early as possible.
It may be recalled that the PHED has installed as many as 251 new solar powered pumps in various districts in rural pockets of Chhattisgarh, officials stated. The Department also installed a total of 8,950 new hand pumps during 2014-15 under the National Rural Drinking Water Mission in the rural pockets of the State.
There were a total of 10,373 tube wells dug up by the Department in the entire State out of which 8,950 wells were declared successful. During the last financial year, 1,034 new hand pumps were established in rural schools and 1,881 in Anganwadis. As many as 141 new tube wells were dug in the urban pockets of the State out of which 126 were declared successful during the last financial year. Notably, Chhattisgarh ranks first in the country in terms of providing drinking water through solar powered pumps, they stated. Out of the total number of solar pumps installed in the entire country in financial year 2013-14, nearly 90 per cent of the solar pumps were installed in Chhattisgarh itself, they claimed.
An amount of Rs65.28 crore has been spent on 6,503 pure and safe drinking water schemes by the Public Health and Engineering Department (PHED) during the past six years in Bastar district. About 6,449 drinking water schemes have been already completed and people are getting safe and pure drinking water, officials stated.
The drinking water projects have been sanctioned during the fiscal 2009-10 and 2014-15. The projects include installation of 6,372 hand-pumps, 91 spot source scheme, 39 Nal-Jal yojana and one water procurement project. The Public Health Engineering Department spent Rs54.72 crore on installation of hand-pumps in Bastar district, Rs5.77 crore on Nal-Jal yojana, Rs3.80 crore on spot source scheme and Rs One crore on water procurement project.
Notably, Chief Minister Raman Singh has said that the State government has set a target of providing two lakh domestic tap water connections in the rural pockets of Chhattisgarh during the next one year. Moreover, in view of the summer season, the Chief Minister directed all the district collectors and officials of Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) to pay special attention to provision of drinking water in all public places in the State.
He said that during the last financial year ( 2014-15), a total of 94,400 domestic tap water connections were provided in the villages through 2,400 ‘Nal-Jal’ schemes. The Chief Minister said that with the new financial year beginning April 1, a budget provision of Rs862 crore had been made for ensuring better drinking water facilities in the State.
He said that a provision of Rs5 crore had been made for implementing community water supply schemes in a total of 19 rural pockets of the State. During the new financial year, a total of 22 cities have been included in the water supply schemes with a budget provision of Rs28 crore.