PANJIM/ASSAGAO: Many parts of Porvorim and Saligao constituencies went without water on Christmas day, due to delay in releasing raw water from the Tillari irrigation canal. However, the entire stretch of Duler from St Xavier’s College upto Cunchelim is experiencing water scarcity for the last 15 days, since the contractor has damaged the water pipeline due to the ongoing underground cabling work.
After the Tillari irrigation plant was shut for maintenance since November 15 this year, the areas of Porvorim and Saligao are receiving water on alternate days but often they go without water for three days.
According to senior journalist Gurudas Sawal who resides in Porvorim, water is released on alternate days and there is no fixed timings. There are instances wherein water was released after midnight. He said that there has been delay in releasing raw water from Tillari irrigation canals and added that they have now been informed that the water supply will be normalised from Tuesday.
Mapusa councillor Adv Shashank Narvekar said that Duler residents are facing water shortage, since the electricity department contractor, while laying underground cables damaged all the water pipelines. At some places water is getting wasted while, most other places there is not a single drop of water.
Narvekar said that without any inventory of water pipeline, the electricity department is laying underground power cables. The contractor is just going on digging the road without consulting local councillor and residents, he alleged.
Narvekar said, “It’s now about 15 days we have been deprived of water due to haphazard work. I really don’t know how the electricity department is just taking people for granted. I even complained to local MLA and Deputy Speaker Joshua D’Souza. But even he has not responded, neither has he even visited the site. For locals in Duler and Cunchelim, it was a Christmas without water.”
Locals informed that PWD engineers also expressed helplessness as the work was being done by the electricity department and there was no co-ordination between both the departments due to which they were unaware of what actually was happening.
PWD officials informed that in whatever possible way they could help by sending tankers so that people are provided with water. But Narvekar said that water by tankers was not enough because they don’t know how long this haphazard work will continue.and people have apprehensions in drinking tanker water as they don’t know the source of this water.
Narvekar demanded that the electricity department must act responsibly and ensure that PWD water supply pipelines are not damaged while laying underground cables.
