Getting ‘dirty’ water for months, Chamba residents meet DC

Chamba, April 3

Residents of Hatnala, Chauntra, Kharuda, and Jansali localities in Chamba town have been getting contaminated potable water supply for the past several months.

After the Jal Shakti Department failed to resolve the issue despite repeated requests, the residents on Wednesday submitted a complaint to Chamba DC. A delegation led by Chamba Municipal Council Neelam Nayar met the DC and submitted a formal complaint in this regard.

In their complaint, residents alleged that water supply pipes had been laid in the midst of sewage lines in their areas. A resident said the pipes were old and had ruptured at several places, which was resulting in sewage getting mixed with the drinking water that was being supplied to their homes.

Several people have fallen ill after consuming the contaminated water. A resident said the contaminated water had led to many ailments among residents in these neighbourhoods and might lead to the outbreak of a severe disease, such as jaundice.

The residents said they had made several complaints to the Jal Shakti Department but the issue had not been addressed so far. Prashant Mahajan, a resident, said people had been falling sick after consuming contaminated water and despite several complaints to the department, the authorities had failed to take action.

Jal Shakti Department’s Executive Engineer Jitender Sharma said residents of Hatnala and Jansali wards had complained about the drinking water pipes being laid alongside sewage lines. The department had replaced these pipes with new ones and provided water supply to the residents, he claimed. The department was striving to provide safe water to residents on time, he said. DC Mukesh Repswal said the Jal Shakti Department had been directed to address the issue and replace water supply pipes passing through sewers.