No proper drinking water in Bicholim, Sattari

Keri

: The monsoon has produced surplus rainfall and raw water is available adequately at

Padocem

, but lack of manpower and frequent breakdown of machinery is causing heartburn to consumers in outlying villages, sources said.

The 40 MLD water treatment plant at Padocem caters to several villages in

Bicholim

and

Sattari

talukas. The problems of irregular supply and often muddy water flowing through taps has drawn protests from agitated villagers over the negligence of the

PWD

in improving infrastructure at the plant.

On Thursday, some members of

Bicholim Municipal Council

(BMC) led by chairperson

Rajaram Gaonkar

visited Padocem and expressed their strong resentment over the irregular water supply.

"For over a month, people in Bicholim town and surrounding areas are not getting adequate supply of drinking water. Sometimes, taps supply muddy water," Bicholim MLA

Naresh Sawal

said.

Sawal

also visited the plant and explained that he had requested PWD minister

Ramkrishna Dhavalikar

to initiate steps to improve the water supply.

Ramesh Barve

, from Pissurlem, Sattari said, "We are facing a lot of inconvenience due to irregular supply. Our village is in the mining belt and we rely solely on tap water from Padocem."

Problems at Padocem are not unusual, as sources said the lack of manpower and the government's failure to regularize 48 daily wage workers has affected the functioning of the plant. Many of them have been working for 15 years. A few breakdowns and poor quality of sand for filtration also add to the woes.

"The plant lacks trained man power. Of three pumps, one of them is not working," a source said.

Former Sakhali MLA

Pratap Gauns

said, "Almost 70% of people's drinking water people is polluted."

Amona, Velguem, Surla and Pale are some of the villages facing shortage of water during the rainy season.

Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.