THE GOAN NETWORK
PANAJI
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday ordered an inquiry into the major lapses by the Water Resources Department (WRD) for failing to release water from the Amthane dam in a time-bound manner, following a severe water crisis in Bardez taluka. The crisis occurred after the left-bank canal, which supplies water from the Tillari reservoir to Goa, was breached last week. This led to a critical shortage of drinking water, prompting the need for alternative water sources.
Speaking to the media, Sawant expressed concern over the delay in releasing water from the Amthane dam, whose gates were found unexpectedly jammed when the need to tap into this source arose. Despite attempts by the WRD to open the gates for the Assonora plant, the delay caused severe disruptions.
Sawant confirmed that strict action would be taken against the concerned engineer for both the delay and failure to maintain the dam.
“I have ordered an inquiry into the entire lapse. Action will be taken against the engineer. The water from the Amthane dam should have been released soon after water supply from Tillari was stopped,” he said.
“The engineer will have to explain what led to so much delay in releasing the water and why the gates were not checked beforehand,” he added.
Meanwhile, efforts to resolve the issue succeeded early on Wednesday morning, as WRD engineers, with the help of Indian Navy divers, managed to open the jammed gates and release water from the Amthane dam. This action was expected to help replenish the reservoirs at the Assonora treatment plant by the evening, and the Public Works Department (PWD) would take over to normalise water supply to the affected areas.
In addition, Sawant provided an update on the Tillari canal repair work, which is expected to be completed by January 31. After that, another 48 hours will be needed to release, treat, and supply water.
Sawant said that the government has already allocated Rs 128 crore for the complete repair and renovation of the Tillari canal to ensure that there are no breaches in the future. He said that the total cost of the project is around Rs 300 crore.
