Digarugaon under threat of waterborne diseases

From our Correspondent

DIMORIA, Sept 2: Digarugaon, a village under Digaru Gaon Panchayat in Dispur Legislative Assembly Constituency (LAC), is under the threat of waterborne diseases. The village ravaged by the recent flood has no drinking water facility despite the fact that the Rs 1-crore Digarupar Water Supply Scheme was launched in the village by the PHE Department around five years back.

Post-flood scerio in Assam is infamous for waterborne diseases, which, if not taken proper care of at the right time, may claim more lives than floods do. Had the State PHE Department run the Digarupar Water Supply Scheme properly, the villagers would not have faced any drinking water crisis now. The water supply scheme has long been lying idle. The village has around 500 families.

According to reports received, the water supply scheme was iugurated by the State PHE Department around five years back. According to the residents of the locality, the scheme has all along been lying as nobody’s child without any inspection by any top officials of the department.

The condition of the installations of the scheme is beyond description. The tanks of the scheme meant for storing water are full of microbes and the water carrying tapes and pipes have been broken.

According to yan Gowala, a youth of the village, one Kar Das was employed to look after the water supply scheme. “Kar Das is staying with his family in the quarters of the water supply scheme. The present plight of the scheme is because of his negligence. Growth of algae is found in all installations of the water supply schemes,” Gowala said.

Shantipada Dey of the village said: “After the floods we’ve been under a severe potable water crisis. Had the water supply scheme been running in good health, we would not have faced such a crisis. The PHE is responsible for this plight of the scheme. No top official of the department inspects the scheme, giving the worker employed for the purpose free hand to do what he wants.”

The water supply scheme has been lying idle for one-year-and-a-half. The villagers urged the department to revive the water supply scheme without further delay.