- Panchayat sent proposal for bore mining thrice
- Dozens of children and elderly people from three villages falling ill
Chronicle Reporter, Sehore
Even in the scorching heat of 44 degrees, if clean drinking water is not available, then it is natural to raise questions on 75 years of development. We are talking about Gram Panchayat Kalamkhedi-Motipura, just 30 kilometers away from the district headquarters. Even during this scorching heat, people here are forced to drink dirty water from the pit. Even for this dirty water, the women of the village have to travel two kilometers.
There are two villages under Kalamkheda Gram Panchayat, more than a dozen hand pumps are installed in both these villages, which were quenching the thirst of the villagers till two months ago. But one by one all these hand pumps either got damaged or became useless due to falling water level. The Gram Panchayat made a proposal three times to install new hand pumps in the village or approve the tap water scheme and sent it to the Public Health Engineering Department, but the hearing has not taken place yet.
There was also a demand to increase the depth of the hand pumps that were damaged and were closed due to the lowering of the water level, but the authorities have not taken care yet, due to the depletion of the drinking water source in the village, the villagers have started using the river flowing two kilometers away from the village. Arrangements for water were made by digging a pit in the middle of the river, but this water is also dirty, muddy and smelly, which even animals do not like to drink, but the villagers here are forced to drink this water.
Children are complaining of vomiting and diarrhea
Due to the consumption of this water, children and other people here are facing complaints like vomiting and diarrhea. Similar is the condition of Aanvlikheda tribal village of Ashta, where people are forced to quench their thirst by extracting water from hilly pits. Here too there is neither a hand pump nor any other water source, due to which the people here have to drink dirty water from deep pits. Due to which their health is being adversely affected, but the PHE department is not taking care here either.
Complaint has been received, we will get bore digging soon
Approval has been given for digging a bore for Gram Panchayat Kalampur. Soon, the bore will be dug after marking the area in the village. The team is investigating the rest of the villages from where complaints are being received.
– SK Saxena
Executive Engineer PHE
