Goa has received its average seasonal rainfall of 116 inches well ahead of time. There’s water everywhere after a flood-like situation recently, with people struggling to cope up with swelling waters. Against this backdrop, consider the plight of Mapusa which is thirsting for potable water. And Tiswadi along with parts of Ponda which have gone dry after two major pipelines supplying water from Opa treatment plant were damaged.
It’s an agonizing shame that the government is going to town with its development mantra while citizens are fighting for their daily water. Lest we forget, in May this year, Minister for Public Works Deepak Pauskar had promised 170 liters of potable water per person in every household. He spoke of how he has set a priority on this count for the next one year without any hindrance. Then there was a promise of a master plan. Where have all these promises gone? These probably are some of the many empty promises that Pauskar has been dishing out to make his presence felt as the new PWD minister. On a different note, Pauskar also promised to get rid of potholes from roads by Ganesh Chaturthi. The clock is ticking, but that’s for another day.
“Hold us responsible in case of an epidemic due to muddy water supply,” says Pauskar while trying to strike an emotional chord with people of Mapusa. Who else could be held responsible? It goes without saying that Pauskar and his government are solely responsible for any health scare arising out of this turbid water. But, how does that help? It’s merely an expression of regret to gain public sympathy. Or consider it regret over failure. If Pauskar is responsible enough, he should first honour his promises or not make a promise at all. Bardez, and Mapusa in particular, have been historically facing water problems, even during Sudin Dhavalikar’s time as PWD Minister. From faulty water pumps at the Assonora plant to pipeline ruptures and turbidity of raw water from Tillari, people have been consistently fighting for drinking water. First-time MLA Joshua D’Souza must understand that any development he envisages of Mapusa must start from these basics of life.
Water distribution has been pathetic to say the least and have been that way for over a decade. Despite the porous pipeline, successive PWD ministers’ promises of 24x7 water supply have gone empty. A collapse of a portion of a retaining wall was enough to create damage to arterial pipelines at Curti-Khandepar and disconnect water supply to Tiswadi and part of Ponda. That tells how fragile and uncertain water distribution could be. And this brings the focus back on Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA), which was roped in to improve the water distribution systems and curb wastage.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has assured round-the-clock water supply by 2025, but that’s a painfully long wait. With nearly a dozen such timelines gone off target already during the earlier regimes, another deadline won’t make any impact on the people. A government which is cobbled together with a breakaway group of Congress under the premise of development cannot shirk its responsibility of providing basic potable water.
