Work on water treatment plant not completed after 5yrs
Work on a much-needed water treatment plant in Tangail municipality is not yet completed, though five years have passed since work began. Originally meant to be completed in two years, construction was delayed due to errors in planning and unscrupulous contractors.
Thousands of dwellers of the century-old municipality remain deprived of their civic right to safe drinking water.
Even those with existing municipality water connections are not getting water as per their demand.
Mizanur Rahman Khan, assistant engineer (water) of Tangail municipality, said there are currently 7,337 water connections out of a total 28,000 holdings in the municipality. Of these existing connections, around 2,000 are out of order.
Once the new water treatment plant starts operations, it will be possible to supply water to 7,000 more holdings, he said.
However, no one can say when the remaining 16,000 holdings will get a water connection.
Md Shahidul Islam of Kagmari area in town, who has an existing water connection, said he has submitted a petition to the municipality authorities to sever his connection as after a few months, there was no further supply of water.
Saifur Rahman of Paschim Akur Takur Para area said although he has been paying municipality water bills, he has an irregular connection.
According to the local Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), the department published a tender on June 15, 2014 for the construction of water treatment plants at 37 district towns.
That year, the firms Rajshahi K H & ATC under a joint venture were contracted for the work in the municipality and directed to complete it in two years. The construction cost of the water treatment plant was estimated at Tk 8,99,45,256.
Five years on, the plant, while mostly constructed, still lies incomplete and idle.
During a visit a couple of weeks ago, the 350 cubic metre capacity plant, is standing in the Kagmari Bridge area. The pump house, with a submersible pump and filter, was also seen to be ready.
No one from the contractor firms was available on site.
Raisul Islam, assistant engineer of the DPHE in Tangail, said the work on the plant was initially delayed because no site selection was conducted at the time.
"In addition, the contracted firms did not do the work -- other people did it under the license of these firms.
"A case was filed against the contractors in this regard and later, the department completed the work with the help of other contractors," he said.
The plant is now ready for test production, which will take place for two months, after it receives electricity connection from the Power Development Board, Raisul added.
"Then, the treatment plant will be handed over to the municipality authorities if the test production is a success."
The municipality does not have the ability to supply water to dwellers as per demand, said Jamilur Rahman Miron, mayor of Tangail municipality.
"A further 20 percent of the total water demand can be met once the newly constructed water treatment plant is started," he said.
However, several more such water treatment plants need to be construct to meet water demand of all the municipality dwellers, he added.
Municipality dwellers have been relying on water from tube wells or private lines, said locals.
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