In Ganjam district, Orissa people are facing acute water crisis. Sources of water are dried up due to the scortching heat. Four blocks in the district are affected with contaminated water, facing an outbreak of diseas. There is no source of drinking water expect tubewells but they are also defunct and work for newly sanctioned tubewells is yet to be taken up.
During last one month more then 10 persons have died and hundreds been affected by waterborne diseases in various places of Ganjam district.
Even till date dysentery continues to affect the residents in at least four blocks, besides some places in Berhampur.
Though the health officials claimed to have checked the diseases and attributed the outbreak due to use of contaminated water, but no steps have been taken for provision of safe drinking water except disinfecting the water sources casually.
Following scorching heat, all the water sources including ponds and open wells, have dried up and the people in the district are experiencing acute water shortage.
In such a situation, tubewells are the only alternate source and this year also the district got funds to sink another 540 new tubewells with 20 tubewells per block.
But while many of the existing tubewells remain defunct, the work for newly-sanctioned tubewells is yet to be taken up. According to official records around 1026 tubewells in 22 blocks in the district are lying defunct which aggravated the water crisis further.
Apart from new tubewells, rainwater harvesting structures were planned at various places, but no sign of such structures is there in the district barring a couple of places.
While the drinking water scenario is poor in the district, the state of other water sources used for bathing and other purposes is no better. Most of the ponds in the district, including Berhampur city, do not have any groundwater sources, rather store the rainwater and in some places drain water is connected to them.
Even most of the ponds in the district have lost the storing capacity due to rapid siltation. This year steps were taken for renovation of the ponds in various places.
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