Water crisis grips Solan again

Tribune News Service

Solan, October 5

Water crisis has again gripped the Solan city, with temporary repair at Giri potable water scheme putting the supply to the town on hold.

Supply every 3rd day

• The city is supplied water by two schemes — Giri and Ashwani. Residents are mainly fed by the Giri scheme, which supplies about 60 to 65 lakh litres per day, while the Ashwani scheme supplies 25 to 30 lakh litres water to the town.
• Residents are now getting water every third day and it has become a cause for concern as people are forced to shell out additional money to get supply from water tankers.

Tall claims fall flat

Tall claims of the Congress-led MC have proven hollow as the water crisis plaguing the city has only deepened. — Rita, a Solan resident

The city is supplied water by two schemes — Giri and Ashwani. Residents are mainly fed by the Giri scheme, which supplies about 60 to 65 lakh litres per day, while the Ashwani scheme supplies 25 to 30 lakh litres water to the town.

Ravikant Sharma, executive engineer, Jal Shakti Vibhag, said, “Some repair work at the Giri scheme will impair water supply to the town tomorrow. Efforts are afoot to provide adequate water to the town, at least on alternate days, as against the present supply every third day. A new treatment plant is being set up at the Giri scheme and it will be operational by March. The plant is expected to augment the existing water supply and sufficient water would be available to cater to the city’s needs. As much as 135 lakh litres would be available on a daily basis after setting up of the new treatment plant,” he added.

Residents are getting water every third day and it has become a cause for concern as people are forced to shell out additional money to get supply from water tankers.

The water woes of the city have not been addressed, even as the municipal council was upgraded to a municipal corporation a year ago. “Tall claims of the Congress-led MC have proven hollow as the water crisis plaguing the city has only deepened. The state government, which had promised better civic facilities after upgrade of this civic body, has also failed to fulfill the very basic requirement of water and the situation is only going from bad to worse,” Rita, a resident, rued.

Soon after assuming power in the MC, the Congress had chalked out a water policy, whereby it had announced Rs 100 fee for using 12,500 litres of water per month from domestic users. Additional water usage would attract higher rates. However, the policy has failed to benefit the residents in the face of irregular supply.

Water distribution in the city is looked after by the MC staff, while its supply has been entrusted with the Jal Shakti Vibhag, which is paid Rs 4 crore annually. With limited sources of revenue, the MC has failed to pay these charges regularly and a liability of Rs 78 crore is already due towards the Jal Shakti Vibhag.

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