THURSDAY, MAY 09, 2024
ASMITA POLJI
PERNEM Like the fresh air they still breathe and with the ocean not far from them, one would have thought their life was easy. But each day for many years, they look away from their non-functioning wells and look towards their dry traps, hoping that drips of civilization, in form of wa-ter would flow from them.
We are not really in the back of beyond but in the heart of an internationally renowned tropical tourist paradise where hedonism and healing waltz together- the beaches and towns of Pernem taluka.
But while the restaurants and tourists’ shacks survive and how, with tankers of expensive paid water and an endless supply of packaged drinking water paid for by guests buying a big slice of the Goa pie, the original inhabitants have a running life of dry days with no water to drink, bathe or clean.
“Just after Ganesh Chaturthi, this year, the water too went away, People use the water of the well for household needs but for consumption, they buy packaged water,” said Anil Shetgaonkar, former Sarpanch of Morjim.
Many villages like Dhargalim and Parsem, the home or the constituencies of former Dy CMs, Chief Ministers, and a Union Minister, are in the shadow of the Mopa airport. While attention and water seem to be meant for only this “international jewel” in Goa’s crown, the locals are leading a life of thorns, people say.
Bharat Bagkar a teacher and resident of Dhargal said, "Irregular water supply issue is a major problem in Pernem at present and will only get worse in the coming future”
No one wants to improve and upgrade the Chandel plant but is only focusing on projects like the Bailpar pump house as there is demand for water for upcoming projects, especially the Mopa airport. Earlier the priority was agriculture and boosting agriculture but now the situation is the opposite. Now people get water for a few hours, after a few months or years, taps will complete-ly go dry,” Bagkar said.
Another resident of Parsem said," We hardly receive from the tap. Sometimes the situation turns so bad that we have to borrow water from those in our neighbourhood who have wells. The gov-ernment is talking about 16,000 of free water but our taps remain dry for more than 20 days of the month", said S Kalangutkar, of the village.
Shirgal Aroba ward and Dhareshwar Nagar ward in Dhargal village is badly hit. So much so, that borrowing water has become a thing. People walk a lot to request those who have a private well if they could spare some water.
The irregular water supply is making some people, especially in ward number 9, walk a few me-ters or borrow water from a private well to get water. And this is in the middle of the Pernem municipal area. Let’s look at the story of Surbanwada, a locality inside ward number 9.
Surbanwada: unlike Jack and Jill, locals go down the hill to fetch a pale of water
Meanwhile, the people of Surbanwada live in a hilly area. Unlike Jack and Jill who went up the hill to fetch a pail of water, Surbanwada folks go downhill to fetch a pale of water from a well. But this 500-meter slope to get the water and walk back with buckets full is beyond the capacity of the infirm and the elderly.
In Parsem, the village of a former Chief Minister, villagers need to walk for water, because the government doesn’t walk the talk
In Parsem village in an area called Dabhalewadi people to have to walk for almost for a kilometre to get fresh well water for consumption. The Chandel water treatment plant is not working at its full capacity and locals blame the government, successive local MLAs, and former ministers for failing to get this issue sorted.
A resident of Corgao, Vishwanath Polji said, "We get water every alternate day or after two days for just one or two hours and by any chance, we fail to store water then have to wait another two days. The situation gets worse during the summer. The Government needs to look into the matter and get it resolved because water is a basic need for a human to survive,” Polji said.
Technical excuses don’t cut any teeth with Morjim villagers
The former Morjim Sarpanch Amit Shetgaonkar said, "For several years the Morjim village is fac-ing an issue of water. We made several requests as well as marched to the PWD office, but the officials continue to give technical excuses like the motor is not working, there is no power amongst host of other reasons.”
Surekha Shetgaonkar sarpanch of Morjim said, "This issue will be taken up for discussion in the next grab sabha meeting. If the issue is not resolved within a week then we may take a morcha to the PWD office," the sarpanch said.
The morcha is their right, but what Goans would really like is free flow of information as to why there is no free flow of water. In the next part of this series, we will attempt to get you some of these answers.
