KENDRAPARA: With onset of summers, water scarcity has come back to haunt residents of Kendrapara town and nearby areas owing to declining water levels in nearby river Luna.
Kendrapara municipality has a population of nearly one lakh under its limits and authorities primarily depend on river Luna at Kalapada village, around 20 km from the town, to supply water to the locals through pipelines.
But with the river bed drying up, catering to water needs of the residents seem to be an uphill task for the civic authorities. Apart from that, the town has 212 tube-wells and 269 water standpoints which is inadequate.
Around 5,000 people of Kendrapara town live in slums. Non-availability of proper housing aside, inadequate water supply has only added to their woes. Left with no option, they draw polluted water from wells and ponds while women and children wait for hours in queues due to heavy rush near the tube-wells and tankers.
Official sources said, 6,558 families have water connections in Kendrapara town but around 2,000 families have been purloining water by tapping the pipelines which is why it is difficult to cater to all consumers.
Locals allege that water crisis in the town has become an annual affair due to slipshod attitude of officials in the Public Health Department (PHD).
“Every summer, Kendrapara town reels under water crisis as river Luna goes dry but authorities are yet to come up with a permanent solution, said Ramakanta Rout of Khadianga locality.
“Though people were never dependent on river Gobari which also flows through the town, they now want the river water to be supplied to them,” said another Ramani Ranjan Samal.
Assistant Engineer of Public Health Engineering department, Kendrapara Raman Dash said, “Kendrapara municipality authorities are now providing around 8.50 lakh liter per day against the requirement of 8.62 lakh liter due to water shortage in river Luna. We have recently decided to use JCB machines to collect more water from the river bed.”