Civic problems galore in Naushehra Pannuan

Residents of Naushehra Panuan village have been grappling with civic problems for a long time now. They are forced to live in pitiable conditions as repeated requests to the district administration have fallen on deaf ears.

The village, situated on National Highways No. 54, has a population of about 10,000. The residents have been deprived of the most basic necessity, that of drinking water for the past more than eight years. The situation has arisen due to the non-payment of electricity bills for tubewell.

The residents said as the underground water had become contaminated, they cannot fetch water from their personal bore. They have to fetch drinking water either from the nearby Chaudhriwala village or from tubewells at village gurdwaras, which are deep enough and are a safe source of drinking water.

Even the machinery of the tubewell has been stolen, along with the doors, windowpanes and other water-pumping apparatus.

The residents said a partially covered portion of the tubewell room has become a haven for drug addicts.

The condition of the link roads to Lauhuka, Nandpur and Dhorian villages has gone from bad to worse. Foul smell emanates from the stagnant water in village ponds, making life all the more difficult for the residents. Majority portion of the drainage channel, which is meant to drain out water from the ponds to the main channel, 2 km away, has been encroached by some influential persons.

The situation in the outer area of the village on the Lauhuka side is more critical as the link road is filled with waste water discharged from houses. There is no provision to drain out the water.

The situation during the rainy season becomes alarming when the entire village remains waterlogged for weeks together.

Due to the lack of streetlights, the villagers become an easy prey for thieves at night. There is no shed at the bus stop and people have to face inconvenience when it rains and during hot weather.

A promoted para-medical employee is managing the affairs at Primary Health Centre. Players who train at the Balbir Singh Pannu Memorial Sports Stadium have been demanding flood lights as they practice in the wee hours and late into the night.

Cabinet Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar, who represents the Vidhan Sabha constituency, when contacted, said he had made elaborate plans to resolve all the problems being faced by the residents of Naushehra Pannuan.

He said the work on link road to Lauhuka had already begun and the work on the Nandpur link road will be started soon. He added that the village will get streetlights soon and the sports stadium will also have floodlights.

Bhullar said the drinking water crisis, too, to be addressed soon. The Cabinet Minister said all the problems of the village were in his notice and the officials concerned had been instructed to do the needful.