As dry spell sweeps, Kashmir Valley is staring at a massive water crisis even the Chief Engineer Public Health Engineering Department (PHE) admitted that it is an alarming situation and that people should use water judiciously.
Much to the concern of the government almost all the water bodies have dried up forcing the PHE department to supply potable water in water tankers in different localities, that face water shortages.
“The dry spell is definitely going to hit us. Even at present the situation is quite alarming. Water is a natural product and we can’t generate it. We have to distribute whatever is available with us and so people have to understand it and use it judiciously,” Chief Engineer PHE, Sanjeev Malhotra told the news agency Kashmir News Trust.
The dry spell as per the weather office is expected to continue and the water problem is set to assume an alarming proportion in Kashmir Valley, particularly in the Jammu region. The fact that almost all water bodies have dried up and the PHE department finds it tough to arrange from any viable source has worsened the situation.
People from multiple localities have already started showing concern about the acute water shortage. Even protests are being held against the grave issue.
Chief Engineer Sanjeev Malhotra confirmed that the surface water sources have dried up and the groundwater level has gone down to the maximum extent. Besides the natural sources, the level of artificial water bodies like reservoirs has also gone down drastically.
Insiders on condition of anonymity said that the government claims that 65% of work has already been completed under different schemes carried out under the banner of Jal Jevan Mission. “If 65% work has been done and waterpipes as being claimed have been laid on thousands of kilometers then why there is water shortage? Something is wrong and rotten that needs to be looked into,” they said.
They said recently, the department claimed that it supplies 90 Million Gallion Daily (MGD) water to Srinagar city. “If that would have been the case, no locality would have ever faced water shortage but the fact is that only 65MGD water is being supplied to Srinagar,” they added.
Chief Engineer Sanjeev Malhotra however said that the quantity of water being supplied to Srinagar on a daily basis fluctuates. [KNT]