Vasco: The residents of Shantinagar in Vasco are in the midst of a severe water crisis which has been on for the past week. They have been forced into hiring water tankers for water needed for their daily requirements or are depending on the Public Works Department’s (PWD) tanker for supply.
Stating that the shortage of water and the crisis is unprecedented, Advocate Rajan Naik, a resident of Shantinagar said, “Since the 23rd of October, we have been facing an acute shortage of water for our daily requirements. Day by day the situation is worsening. This unfortunate situation requires the immediate attention of PWD officials, failing which we will be forced to agitate in front of the water supply department at Baina to make sure our demands our met.”
Another resident, Siddharth Kadam talks about the chaos that the deficit of water is causing in the neighbourhood. “PWD officials have been sending the water tanker on a few trips to the area, besides making efforts to find out the reason for the fault. However, the crisis has elevated to such a level that one can see residents fighting and chaos ensuing in order to grab that one extra bucket of water. I am very surprised. If the situation is like this in the month of October, what will it be like in the summer time?” he questioned.
Herald decided to find out the root of the issue and spoke to Assistant Engineer of the PWD, Vishwambar Bhende who stated that there is no issue with the supply from the Salaulim pumping station. He also asserted that his team has been trying to locate the fault for the last few days but we unable to do so. “We have been making an effort to find the fault that is preventing the water from reaching the residents of Shantinagar. I conducted an inspection along with my team on Thursday. I suspect that there is a blockage or damage to the pipeline that is supplying water to the area. I can assure that the water crises of Shantinagar will soon be resolved. In the meantime, we have sent tanker from our end to help out the locals with water,” Bhende stated.
