Kulgam, May 26: Scores of inhabitants including women from Wanpoh area of South Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Wednesday staged a protest against Jal Shakti department for “failing” to provide pure drinking water supply.
The protesters from different villages including K G Raina, Mogalbagh, Bagh-e-Wanpoh, Sofigund assembled and blocked the Kulgam road, affecting the traffic movement for several hours.
The protesters said that the residents have been facing a water shortage for the last many years and the department is forcing them to drink contaminated water from open streams and ponds.
“Scores of people, most of them elderly and children are suffering from water-borne disease while the department is sleeping,” they said.
“Due to negligence of administration we are forced to consume contaminated water, we have raised the issue several times with Jal Shakti authorities but they have just ignored our pleas,” said Aquib Gulzar, a local.
He said locals request district administration and concerned departments to provide them with water supply from the Aripal scheme so that they will not face more problems in the summer.
AEE Jal Shakti Qazigund, Rafiq Ahmad Bhat said that they are already providing the drinking water from a water supply scheme, “however supply doesn’t remain 24×7.”
“The concentration of iron in the water was little more than a few months ago and periodically we are doing testing in the drinking water. One more test will be conducted tomorrow,” Bhat said.
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