KL NEWS NETWORK
SRINAGAR
With Eid-ul-Fitr two days away, Kashmiris are facing huge water crisis.
From South to North, Srinagarities in summer capital have been facing tough situation given the water shortage during holy month of Ramzan. However, the officials of Public Health Engineering (PHE) don’t accept the people’s version.
When Kashmir Life brought the issue of water crisis in to the notice of Chief Engineer, PHE, he squarely refused there “is no water crisis” in Srinagar.
However, his deputy at PHE’s Balgarden office confessed that a water plant in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal was shut for last days. “A boy had drowned in the canal in Ganderbal and the rescue operation affected the water supplying plant,” an official from Balgarden said.
Kashmir Life received a number of representations from Pampore, HMT, Lawaypora, Barzulla, Lawaypora, Gund Hassi Bhat, Sozaith and Khanyar. The people complained of severe water shortage and alleged that local employees of PHE were not working sincerely.
Even ruling PDP Lawmaker representing Batamaloo assembly, Sheikh Noor Mohammad, segment is facing water issues back home. He is a resident of Lawaypora.
“I asked Executive Engineer Master Plan Division Srinagar to supply water in the affected areas through tankers,” MLA Batamaloo told Kashmir Life. “My people have been suffering and Insha Allah we will get the problem solved soon.”
However, he said that people too are accused in this crisis “because they use drinking water for parks, washing cars and irrigating vegetable fields”. This is something PHE CE too said. “People need to be sensitive towards this problem,” MLA said, “this is dry season and supply of water quantity from Sukhnag has come down and there is rainfall as well.”
A local of Pampore from Srinagar outskirts told Kashmir Life that the people were fetching water from tube wells for last four days. “There is no water at all,” a local from Kadlabal said.
When contacted, MLA concerned and MoS in Ms Mehbooba Mufti led government, Mir Zahoor, said, “If there is any problem, I will get it rectified.”
Mir added that there “should not have been any problem because government recently started a water scheme in the area”.
