Water crisis acute in C'nawabganj town

Thousands of people in the town are suffering from acute crisis of safe drinking water for over a month.
Residents of Rehaichar, Charjotprotap, Mistrypara, Masjidpara, Hospital Road, Nimtala, Fakirpara and Puraton Bazar are the worst victims.
Water can not be lifted as per demand through the pumps due to decline in water table, alleged locals.
While visiting a few affected areas recently, this correspondent found women crowding around taps to collect drinking water.
Residents Laily Akhtar of Charjotprotap and Madhusudan Bhaskar of Mistrypara said low water flow through the pipeline added to the sufferings of the townspeople for the last one month.
Earlier, several hundred tube wells in the town remained inoperative following detection of arsenic contamination. It is high time to install surface water filtration project, said several affected people.
Besides, 16 pumps of the municipality used for water supply are not functioning properly due to sharp fall in groundwater level.
Saiful Islam, executive engineer of the municipality, said the authorities were supplying 31 lakh gallons of water against the demand of 36 lakh gallons a day to around 8,000 subscribers.
But, the demand is on increase as the population in the area is going up everyday, he said.
To resolve the crisis, water will be lifted from the River Mohananda for nine months and the rest time from the ground level. Although we are trying to improve the situation, the existing facilities are too inadequate to resolve the problem, he added.