Team Herald
POINGUINIM: The residents of Shingolem, Canacona, have not received piped water at their homes for over six days. Their complaints to the authorities have not yielded any results. Over 80 houses are said to be affected.
On Tuesday morning, a group of around 50 residents led by Kaitan Vaz, Wilson Fernandes gheraoed PWD Assistant Engineer Lester D’Souza. After listening to their grievances, Lester took action, and the next morning, the people got water in trickles, but they were pleased.
When contacted, Junior Engineer Deepraj Madkaikar said that the Water Resources Department (WRD) had closed the gates of the bandhara and sufficient water had not percolated at the pumping station located at Ordhofond, which was built to meet the needs of the locals and was in operation for many years.
Madkaikar said that they had recently held a meeting with the PWD minister and apprised him of the situation and the problems they had to face, including the wrath of the people.
Sources informed that the minister had assured to take steps to ensure that people got adequate water.
The WRD’s contention is that the water that is stored at the dyke in Ordhofond is meant for agricultural purposes and not for human consumption.
When asked if they had approached the ward councilor, Shyamsundar Desai, residents said that it was useless because after getting elected he had become “invisible” and most of the time he switched off his mobile phone.
The monsoons are a few months away, and with the drying of water bodies, the people will face many hardships due to scarcity of water.
