No end to water woes

BERHAMPUR: Rising temperature and drinking water crisis have left several towns in the State virtually dry and the Silk City is no exception to this seasonal trauma. The water problem here is perennial which only aggravates in summer and long queues of women waiting for tankers are a common sight in several areas of the city. The residents struggle to slake their thirst.Though a two-decade-old problem, no serious measures have been taken to counter the crisis. The city has started feeling the pinch from mid-March itself unlike the previous years when the water crisis was felt in mid-April.For a population of over four lakh and a demand of around 54 million litres (MLD) per day, the urban water supply department is able to supply less than 35 MLD from all sources. During  peak summer, the water supply is further reduced.The shortage is felt even as the city gets its water supply from two major sources _ the Dakhinapur drinking water project and Rushikulya project at Badamadhapur besides bore-wells, tube-wells and open wells. Both these projects provide less than 35 million gallons of water per day, said sources in the Public Health Department.Though the sources admitted to the city facing water scarcity, they said it is under control. Apart from the two projects, water is supplied from 27 deep bore-wells and around 864 tube-wells in the city. In addition, the PHD and Berhampur Municipal Corporation press tankers to supply water. Yet these tankers provide only drops of hope for the residents of Bijipur, Gandhinagar, Gosaninuagaon, Godavarishnagar, Aravindanagar and Utkal Ashram Road. According to official records, there are around 14,000 odd domestic pipeline connections and 1,800 stand posts for water supply in the city. Sources said though this year water supply increased compared to previous years, the scarcity persists.