Water supply to Shillai primary school restored after 50 days

Nahan, September 2

Staff and students of Government Primary School, Tandiyon, in the Shillai subdivision of Sirmaur district heaved a sigh of relief after water supply to the school was restored after 50 days.

With taps in the school running dry since the second week of July, the part-time staff had to fetch drinking water from a stream 1.5 km away. It was a daily struggle for mid-day meal workers as well to carry heavy water cans over the distance for cooking.

The School Management Committee (SMC) and teachers had made repeated complaints to the Jal Shakti Department and the Chief Minister’s helpline, but to no avail. The situation worsened when pipeline supply water to the school was damaged due to road construction work in the area. The Jal Shakti Department failed to repair the line for over a month-and-a-half, forcing the school community to go without water for weeks.

The issue was highlighted by The Tribune in these columns on August 26 (‘Construction damages pipeline, leaves primary school sans water’). The news report swung the Jal Shakti Department officials into action. They laid a plastic pipe as a temporary arrangement to restore water supply to the school.

Junior Basic Teacher (JBT) Ran Singh, the school’s in-charge, confirmed that the department had laid an alternative pipeline to resolve the long-standing water crisis at the school.

Jal Shakti Department Assistant Engineer Dinesh Saklani said the water supply to the school had been restored through a temporary plastic pipeline. He added that once the road construction work is complete, a permanent water supply pipeline will be laid for the school.