Women have to trek 2 km to fetch water from a nullah at the foothills of Chandangiri
Women have to trek 2 km to fetch water from a nullah at the foothills of Chandangiri

Villagers struggle to get safe drinking water in Gajapati district of Odisha

Adanaguda village has become victim of years of negligence and empty assurances as it has one well and one tube well.

GUMMA(GAJAPATI DISTRICT): Development is the most over-used buzzword when polls are round the corner. But the ground reality often belies it. For Adanaguda, a nondescript village under Gumma block, even basic amenities like drinking water are a far cry for locals. With around 20 families who depend on shifting cultivation, goat rearing and collecting forest produce, the village has not only been a victim of geographic limitations but also administrative apathy. Hardly 10 km from the district headquarters, the village has become victim of years of negligence and empty assurances.

Adanaguda village has one open well and one tube well. While the water in the well is filthy and contaminated, the tube well hardly releases five to six buckets of water per day. The situation gets worse in summer. Owing to acute water scarcity, the only option left for the villagers is a nullah situated at the foothills of Chandangiri, around 2 km away from the village.

“As the nullah is used by humans and animals, the water is unhygienic, so much so that we have to filter the water with our clothes,” said Parbati Sabar, a villager. The abysmal situation has led to an increase in water-borne diseases. Malnourishment among children is also high. “No government official or medical team has ever paid  a visit to the village,” alleged Sabar. As there is no road connectivity to the nullah, women walk along embankments for fetching water.

Ironically, there is a concrete road from Paralakhemundi which ends at Jhani village, around 5 km from Adanaguda. Another road ends at Jhola village, around 2 km from Adanaguda. However, one has to cross a morrum road to reach Adanaguda from both the villages. During rainy season, the route becomes inaccessible.

Apart from these, the village reels under irregular power supply, tardy implementation of Indira Awas Yojana and other government schemes. “A proposal has been mooted for road connectivity under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana. Steps are being taken to mitigate water scarcity,” said block office sources.

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