How safe is the well water in Panaji? In a complete breach of systems, well water polluted with e-coli and other micro-organisms has been supplied to a section of Panaji residents through tankers for over ten days.
An urban health officer’s certification that water is unsafe for consumption fell on deaf ears, and tankers continued their rounds. The nexus is clear as daylight. Tanker owners may be distributing water, but other departments too are involved, each conniving in some way. Where is the CCP sanitation inspector and departments like FDA and WRD who are primarily shouldering responsibilities of health, hygiene and water resources? Or are we to believe the entire system is running on auto-pilot mode?
It is a shame that Panaji, projected as a smart city, is a place where people have to choose between life without water and contaminated water. The perennial water shortages are there for everyone to see. There are constant water leakages in the form of broken pipes. And we also hear of a flourishing water supply business. Put together, and it makes a very suspicious picture.
Defying an order and supplying contaminated water means there is active connivance of officials across departments. It also brings to light that there are no checks on tankers supplying water to households and colonies. And there are also no checks on water supplied to hotels, restaurants and eateries either. A callous approach towards the people is out in the open while the government is screaming “swachhata” everywhere. The open defecation ban turned out to be a sham, but that’s another story.
Time and again, authorities have flattered to deceive on promises. Lest we forget, the ambitious Nital Goem Nital Baim scheme that was launched with much fanfare in June 2017 by the then Manohar Parrikar regime. It looks like the focus on retrieving traditional wells with half a mind of adding a texture of heritage is long forgotten.
In a significant exercise undertaken last year, the WRD registered around 6,502 wells, besides the 1,025 bore wells in Goa. However, such a registry of wells makes no sense if there are no periodic checks on the quantity and quality of groundwater. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant was contemplating on GPS to track commercial tankers supplying water to keep an eye on overexploitation, but that hasn’t materialized till now. Goans have heard of grandiose plans, but delivery has always remained suspect.
In the current scenario, it is apparent that authorities, including the WRD, PWD and the CCP have no clue of the underground water-supply system, or the floor plan of the age-old sewerage lines. Health of ordinary citizens cannot be compromised because of systemic shortcomings. Water contamination has to be taken seriously. The government must initiate a thorough probe into the incident. Who knows, this could lead to a bigger scandal. Commercial tankers cannot be allowed to run amok mafia-style, there need to be checks at every level. Those involved in the recent incident at Sachayani building near Mahalaxmi Temple need to be brought to book.
