Lokmat News Network
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: District Collector Dilip Swami today informed that an order has been issued to suspend major construction activities in areas (where there is acute water shortage) in the district where there is excessive water usage until June 15.
While addressing the newsmen, the collector said, “ A total of 678 tankers are supplying water to 412 villages and 61 other places in the district. The squads will visit affected villages to plan and devise solutions, schedule water supply by the end of June, assess the quality of supplied water, register tanker trips, certify the trips, and identify nearby tanker filling stations. Hence the squads have been given instructions for further action.
Swami claimed that no proposal for tanker requisition at the sub-divisional level has been pending. Efforts to desilt water reservoirs are underway through some NGOs. The work of the Jal Yukta Shivar scheme is in progress, and the Jal Jeevan Mission is nearing completion. Some projects have been delayed due to contractors, therefore, the revenue administration has been advised to monitor the works.
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Under the Groundwater Act, within 500 meters of public wells, drilling of new borewells and wells has been prohibited. If water is used for construction in rural areas with a scarcity of drinking water, then the construction work cannot proceed. Drinking water is a top priority, therefore, instruction has been given to suspend such construction activities until June 15. The administration is taking concrete measures regarding water and fodder scarcity, said the district collector.
File application regarding scarcity
Suppose any village is facing shortage of water. In that case, the villagers and gram panchayats should apply to the tehsildar who will then undertake a study to explore possibilities of arranging water through different means. Efforts will be made to ensure that no one should be deprived of water. Places, where tankers are currently operating, should be made tanker-free in the future through measures like implementing water harvesting, digging of wells, recharging of borewells, etc, stressed the district collector.