EDITORIAL
New infrastructure is needed but management of potable water must be efficient
An important issue was discussed in the Goa Assembly on Thursday, that of drinking water supply. The government came under severe criticism from opposition members over water shortages in several parts of the state. Two ruling party MLAs had raised the issue earlier this week. It is because of this forum that such issues are getting highlighted, putting pressure on the government to address them.
Minister for Drinking Water Subhash Phal Dessai on Thursday said that over 40% of Goa’s water supply is Non-Revenue Water (NRW). Leakages due to ageing pipelines, ongoing works by various departments that require digging of roads, water pilferage and 70,000 non-functional water meters were listed by him as factors for the losses. For nearly two decades now, NRW figures have been rolled out by the government. In the past, decisions had been taken to plug the leakages and reduce NRW. However, either the measures were not implemented or the announcements remained only on paper. The NRW figure is very high and reflects badly on the functioning of the department. Now that there is a Drinking Water Supply Department, the government should be in a better position to show its efficiency.
The Assembly was informed that the state’s current water requirement is 695 MLD while the actual water supplied is only 633 MLD. The Minister said that the government plans to increase drinking water supply to 1,000 MLD by December. He informed the House that the government has plans to replace the water pipelines in Goa, which are over 40 years old, in a phased manner within three years. As the cost will be around Rs 1,200 crore, the state will seek funds from the Centre. “If the Centre as well as the state can fund this project, then we can complete it within one and a half years,” he said, assuring that, however, 276 km of new water pipeline would be in place in the state within the next three to four months.
Opposition members came down heavily on the government, accusing it of approving mega projects at the cost of providing water supply to local residents. Leader of the Opposition Yuri Alemao and others criticised the government for failing to upgrade the water supply system infrastructure. Phal Dessai said that the first priority of the government for supplying water will be domestic single dwellings, followed by small projects and then large projects. He said that 26% of Goa’s population gets 24×7 water while 13.3% get it for 8 to 12 hours. He also stated that 44% of consumers get four to eight hours of water supply and 9.4% receive water supply only for up to four hours.
Every summer, the water shortage situation worsens. Most of the time, water tankers provide relief, but their cost is also increasing. There were cases in the not very recent past of residents waking up before dawn to wait for water to flow into their taps. People do not expect this situation more than 65 years after Liberation. Water is a basic necessity, and citizens should not have to struggle for every drop, that too when Goa, unlike many parts of the country, receives more than enough rainfall. The current situation only shows that governments over the decades never made drinking water supply a top priority. No doubt some major decisions had been taken, but they were few and far between.
Definitely, water supply infrastructure has to be upgraded, but the overall supply management has to improve and must be given top priority.
