All News

In Bardiya, 89% of households are found to be outside the reach of safe drinking water. According to the data from the Drinking Water and Sanitation Office, Bardiya, 94,630 households lack access to safe drinking water. Those 89% still depend on hand pumps for water. The water from such sources contains high levels of iron and arsenic. People are forced to drink this contaminated water. On the other hand, 11,696 households have access to clean water.

In Gulariya Municipality, out of 16,202 households, 13,252 households, in Madhuwan Municipality, 10,240 households out of 12,444, in Thakurbaba Municipality, 9,865 households out of 11,468 lack access to safe drinking water. Similarly, in Barbardiya Municipality, 15,675 households out of 16,897 are without safe drinking water, and in Bansgadhi Municipality, 13,921 households out of 15,091 lack access to safe drinking water.

Likewise, in Rajapur Municipality, 13,317 of 13,659 households lack access to safe drinking water. In Geruwa Rural Municipality, 7,420 out of 7,762 households are without safe drinking water, and in Badayatala Rural Municipality, 12,861 households out of 12,961 are without access to safe drinking water. This information was provided by Chhabilal Bastola, a technical officer at the Drinking Water and Sanitation Office.

This year, Rs 10,194,000 has been allocated for various drinking water projects, according to technical officer Bastola. He explained that the budget will be used for constructing walls, electrification, tank construction, and office buildings for drinking water projects, as well as for the maintenance and expansion of water pipelines, sanitation, and drainage systems. Trishna Gurung, the secretary of the Ramkrishna Drinking Water Project in Madhuwan Municipality, emphasized the importance of clean and safe water for human life. She stated that the Local governments should establish drinking water labs and employ technicians to test the quality of drinking water projects.

Basant Kumar Dulal, the head of the Drinking Water and Sanitation Office in Bardiya, stated that the delay in the completion of drinking water projects is caused by budget shortages, lack of manpower for office operations, damage to water pipes during road expansion works, delay in contract construction work, and the lack of priority for drinking water projects at the local level. He mentioned that although the office has positions for five sub-engineers, only one sub-engineer is currently available, which is another issue. Consumers also should invest in drinking water projects to make it work, but inactive consumer committees cause problems.

Tika Sammeli, the Chairperson of the Federation of Drinking Water and Sanitation Users, stated that the federal and provincial governments do not allocate sufficient budgets for running drinking water projects, delay the disbursement of funds, and that local governments are dependent on the provincial and federal governments. As a result, the completion of drinking water projects faces delays. He expressed the need for all authorities to not only manage the budget for project construction but also run awareness programs.

 

Prakash Poudel