Jajpur: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued notices to the Jajpur administration asking it to reply over three separate cases of water scarcity in the district during last summer season.
The apex rights body issued the notices to the collector over the cases filed by social activist RK Tripathy after exhaustive reports about water scarcity were published in Orissa Post and Oriya daily Dharitri.
Amiya Kumar Parija, executive engineer of rural water supply and sanitation department, said the cases are being reviewed and the officials concerned have been asked to file their reports. A reply will be filed before the NHRC on receiving the reports, he added.
According to reports, people of the district faced acute water scarcity due to scant rainfall in last summer. All the rivers, canals, nullahs and ponds in the district dried up leaving the residents parched for water.
The 18,198 tube-wells in the district failed to meet the water needs of the inhabitants while the piped water supply system remained defunct in many places due to erratic power supply and technical snags.
Media reports has highlighted how the residents were digging pits to collect water. They repeatedly drew the attention of the district administration but the latter was found helpless in mitigating their problems, it was learnt.
Things came to such a pass that the district officials had to regularly file replies to the state government about the water problems. The district officials in their replies to the government had held industrial units of the district responsible for the water woes.
They claimed that large bore-wells installed by industrial units on their premises led to the depletion of groundwater. As a result, tube-wells went dry and failed to throw water to meet the demands of residents.
In the first case (5509.2016) Tripathy alleged the villagers of Takuathenga under Nathuabar panchayat in Rasulpur block had to dug up the riverbed of Brahmani to collect water after the lone tube-well in their village threw muddy water.
A new tube-well was installed in the village after reports were published in the media.
Similarly, Adampur rural water supply project remaining defunct for over two years has led to water shortage in Nathuabar, Bhagirathpur and Adampur villages.
A second case (5513/2016) was filed with the rights body about the use of pond water by the villagers of Abulapur under Andhari panchayat of Korei block for cooking and drinking purpose.
A third case (5029/2016) was filed about the people of Bhoisahi in Bahagada village under Dharmasala block digging pits in the dried up high-level canal and collecting water to meet their daily needs.
Observers claimed that the cases have caught the administration and RWSS on the wrong foot. They apprehend that the RWSS might try to hoodwink the rights body by submitting false reports.
They claimed the situation has worsened as the district administration does not prepare in advance to fight the water problem during the summer season. PNN
