Thirsty streets, silent taps in Nurpur

For the fourth day in a row, most parts of Nurpur town have remained without piped drinking water, forcing residents to line up with buckets and bottles at wells and even depend on relatives from outside the town for supplies. The crisis began earlier this week when incessant rain and landslides at Nakki under Suliali section damaged power supply poles and pipelines of the Chakki water supply scheme, the town’s main lifeline.

Nurpur has three water supply schemes, but two are currently disrupted, leaving only Niazpur locality partially functional. The Jal Shakti Department (JSD) managed to repair the broken pipelines, but the supply has not resumed because the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited has yet to restore power to the 11 kV feeder line that energises the pumping system.

Vikas Thakur, Executive Engineer of HPSEBL Nurpur, said the damaged poles were erected on Thursday and conductor sagging work was underway. “We expect to complete the restoration by this evening,” he said. Meanwhile, JSD Executive Engineer Anand Baloria, who visited the Chakki site, confirmed that pipelines had been repaired but warned that the fragile hillside could trigger fresh slides. “If power supply is restored smoothly, residents will begin receiving water by Saturday morning,” he added. He also noted that 21 of the 24 disrupted water schemes in the division have been restored.

But the promises have done little to ease the plight of townspeople. On Friday morning, long queues snaked around “Chowdharian Da Khu,” a historic well, as residents scrambled to fill pitchers and plastic cans. Some, like Arun Sahotra of Ward No. 2, relied on relatives from outside. “My cousin came from Jalandhar today carrying five cold-drink bottles filled with water. That’s how desperate things have become,” he said.

Others shared similar ordeals. Usha Devi and Anu Sharma said their families had run out of stored water days ago, with none left even for bathing or shaving. “The administration must make alternate arrangements. We can’t go on like this,” they lamented. Pavnesh Gupta admitted he borrowed a pot of water from a relative in another ward to cook meals. Schools, too, have been affected, with dry storage tanks leaving students without drinking water. Amid the crisis, help has come from unexpected quarters. The RB Jankalyan Foundation, a local NGO at Jassur, arranged water tankers for parts of Nurpur and nearby villages. Its director, Akil Bakshi, posted an open offer on Facebook, promising to meet residents’ needs. Tankers were dispatched to Ward No. 8, Malkwal, Thehar and Ondh, offering a temporary lifeline to the parched population.

For now, the town waits anxiously for the hum of pumps at Chakki to return—and with it, the comfort of running water.