Return
to Story Page
To print: Select File and then Print from your
browser's menu
Nandini Oza
VADODARA, Oct 14: Water being supplied through tankers is a common sight in scarcity areas. In Vadodara, too, it is common. But for a different reason. The areas are getting water aplenty, but contaminated.
There is no end in sight to Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC)'s engineering wing digging grounds and using trial and error methods to detect faults, at least in the near future. And this has been going on for the past several years.
Water contamination is frequently reported from Maneja, Kishanwadi, parts of Warasia, Ramdevnagar, Mona Park and Sangita Park Society on the Ajwa Road and Nava Yard `D' cabin and, several other areas. The reasons: Leakages owing to corrosion in old water and drainage pipelines, unauthorised connections and residents' failure to replace more than 20 year old galvanised iron water pipelines for connections. Construction over utility lines aggravates the problem.
Highly placed sources say VMC effort two years ago, asking residents to change 20-year-old pipelines, failed miserably as hardly a few came forward to bear the expenses. Since then, the civic body has been fighting shy of repeating the effort. While a Mumbai-based company has been asked to prepare a drainage master plan, civic officers surprisingly are not sure whether it would recommend replacement of the old lines with the new.
``My entire family has taken ill'', says Gulam Mohammad of Navgaji Vorwad. He is not alone. Many in the area suffer from one or the other minor ailment due to water contamination.
And VMC has done precious little to find a permanent solution. The register of Vadodara Fire Brigade, which supplies water, indicates that contamination has no barriers of seasons and localities. Albeit, more prone are localities in the walled city, especially Wadi.
Two months ago, Maneja reported contamination due to alleged mixing of water with drainage pipelines. ``The fault has been rectified and the medical teams have been pulled out, but the fire brigade continues to provide water as it is not informed to stop the supply,'' says a fire brigade officer on terms of anonymity.
Deputy fire officer D A Patel admits the brigade is not informed. The requests come from various quarters - water works department, ward offices, people and councillors. ``The supply stops a few days after our men inform us that the affected area has started getting potable water'', Patel adds.
On a day nearly 30 to 40 tankers go to different areas on account of religious programmes, sports, marriages besides the areas which report contamination. In cases of marriages and the demand to supply water to, say, the first or second floor, the service comes with a charge. According to Fire Brigade sources, nearly 25 per cent of the tankers, each carrying 6,000 litres, go to the areas affected by contamination and less water pressure. This is apart from water procured from private contractors.
Sabia Garibwala, of Moti Vorwad in Wadi, says VMC took nearly a month to detect the fault after the last contamination was reported. ``In Taiwada, we received drainage water for over a week,'' recalls Kamalbhai Bandwala. While Wadi needs new pipelines, Kishanwadi's problem is more severe because of unauthorised construction over utility lines. And if the situation worsens medical teams visit the areas to provide treatment and chlorine tablets, as usual.
Kishanwadi social worker SKankuben does not remember how many times she has taken morchas to VMC to complain about contamination. Congress councillor Abdul Aziz Dangiwala has represented the problem in Wadi time and again. ``After one area, the problem crops up in another in Wadi'', sums up Dangiwala. And Congress leader Kanchanbhai Parmar feels VMC should concentrate on this problem rather than spend funds on high mast lights.
Municipal commissioner G R Aloria admits to the problem. On whether VMC has failed to supply potable water, he says it is trying to do its bit to solve the problem. ``We have changed lines in certain areas'', he says, claiming contamination is bound to occur in Indian conditions.
``In Tulsiwadi, VMC changed water pipeline at a cost of nearly Rs 12 lakh but now residents want service lines up to their houses. This is not possible,'' says water works committee chairman Umakant Joshi.
Unfortunately, considering the magnitude of the problem, the efforts have been too little.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
------------------------------------------------------------
This story was printed from Net Express located at http://www.expressindia.com. Net Express provides a portal to India, with news from The Indian Express and The Financial Express along with sites on travel and tourism, the entertainment industry, the power sector, the environment and much more.
------------------------------------------------------------