“Jal Shakti” in Crisis

Jammu is witnessing aggressive protests by the Jal Shakti/PHE employees for the regularisation. Daily wagers of the department have intensified their protests and on Monday they could be seen taking the police personnel head on while they were trying to march towards the Chief Minister’s residence. Numerous daily wagers could be seen choking the traffic movements in the main city area of Jammu as they marched from various sides towards the Secretariat. The magnitude of protest could be gauged from the struggle that the police personnel had to make to control the agitated employees who were raising slogans in favour of their long pending demands. The protestors marched through Raghunath Bazar and Residency Road from the PHE office located at BC Road in the heart of the Jammu city. The impact of the prolonged strike by the employees has affected the water supply to almost all areas of the Jammu city rendering people without drinking water. This has led to problems for the masses forcing them to purchase the water from the private tankers. Mercury has already started soaring in the Jammu region and in such a situation water consumption has also increased. Strikes by the daily wagers of the Jal Shakti/PHE have become a phenomenon as every year these employees resort to strikes by suspending their duties. The Jammu and Kashmir Government must look into the demands of these agitating employees on priority as it causes inconvenience to the common masses who are the worst hit by these strikes. There is a need to keep the essential services available to the masses with the alternative operational plan ready till the issue of the daily wagers is sort out. It must be underlined that on the one hand the authorities have been collecting the water tariff on a regular basis from the consumers annually but there is no proper supply of water to the users. This speaks about mismanagement. Consumers must be paid the value for their money. There is an urgent need to make the Jal Shakti/PHE work professionally. Now that the popular government is in place it is hoped that it will end the stalemate. Stopping the water supply to the consumers when they are paying for it is unacceptable. If consumers are made to pay the dues in time then the Jal Shakti/PHE is accountable to the public. It must set its house in order and put the water supply in place. Besides this there are also complaints of impure water being supplied. Filtration must be streamlined so that the health of the public is not compromised. Electricity and water supply are the essential supplies and unfortunately both of these services are not up to the mark in Jammu and Kashmir. And this is happening when billing has been streamlined over the years. Professionalism does not mean just collecting revenue from the masses and then leaving the consumers high and dry. People are agitated and are not happy with the services being rendered by the Jal Shakti/PHE. Temperature is rising in the Jammu region and in such a situation the demand for the water consumption will rise. The agitating employees know it well that if the government is to be brought under pressure then it is the opportune time to stop the water supply. As it will provoke the people and will cause desperation among them. In the end it is the consumer who is being victimised. Authorities must ensure that the consumers are held hostage for the crisis in Jal Shakti/PHE. It must restore the water supply in Jammu at the earliest.