Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Oct 22: In a shocking revelation made by the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (CAG) report on Jammu district, around half of Jammu district’s population drinks water full of faecal e-coli that has been declared unfit for drinking.
The report attributes the unsafe drinking water of Jammu district to the inadequate planning of the water supply schemes and their poor execution by the State Government.
The report says that some of the water supply schemes taken up under Government of India’s flag ship programme, Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP), 9 years ago are yet to be completed.
The CAG report says that departmental records and water testing records of the Government Medical College and Jammu hospital showed that out of 115 samples collected by local authorities during 2010-11 show that 48 samples were found unfit for drinking and contained faecal e-coli.
The report says that records with the Chief Medical Officer Jammu suggest that over 1.6 lakh cases of water borne diseases like diarrhea, typhoid and viral hepatitis, were reported in the district during 2006-10.
The dismal picture painted in the report reveals that some of the water supply schemes that were taken up in 2003 and were to be completed between 1 to 3 years are not complete yet.
The report says that under the ARWSP, 133 water supply schemes were taken up during 2003-2010 and out of which only 75 were completed. Out of 85 schemes taken up in 2003-07 to be completed with one to three years, 19 schemes are yet to be completed. “The non-completion of these 19 schemes resulted in the cost escalation of over Rs 16 crore”, the report adds.
The report says that due to inadequate planning and poor execution of schemes in the Jammu district around 164 habitations have been denied pure drinking water.
The report says that ARWSP scheme was meant for the rural population of the district and records of the ARWSP show that in gross violation of the guidelines, 12 water supply schemes at an estimated cost of Rs 19.86 crore were taken up in area falling under Municipal limits of Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC).
The report says that Executive Engineer City Division-I, Jammu stated that the schemes covering urban areas of Jammu city were taken due to pressing needs of the drinking water in these areas and funds were diverted for this. But report says that it is the gross violation of the scheme meant for the rural population.
The report says that to have a reliable and sufficient water management system in the district, a detailed plan was to be formulated so that water supply schemes under District Plan funded by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) could be taken up for execution in a phased manner and prioritized for optimum results.
The report says that no such system was in place and schemes were identified by sectoral officers as per local demands and were then approved by DDB for execution.
The report says that under district plan 48 schemes were approved by the Board. Out of these schemes 32 were taken up during 2003-06 for completion within one to three years. “Only 20 schemes were completed and 68 habitations were deprived of safe drinking water”, the report reveals.
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