Water Crisis in Jammu

Water crisis is deepening in Jammu. People are being made to suffer for no fault of theirs. Mercury is rising and people are being made to fend for water. Water supply in Jammu has been severely affected due to the strike by the daily wage employees of the Jal Shakti/PHE Department demanding their regularisation. They have taken to the streets and are resorting to strike. This has totally disrupted the water supply in Jammu region. As the summer has approached, people need water for managing their daily needs. In summers the water consumption rises. Non –availability of water has led to unhygienic surroundings in Jammu. The reason being that people are not able to get enough water to clean their clothes ,manage their kitchens, and drains are also stinking. Water is the basic need in all societies. Non-availability of water to the consumers reveals the gross mismanagement as this should not have been allowed to happen in the first place. The issue of regularisation of the daily wagers is lingering for quite some time. But this does not mean that the Jal Shakti/PHE Department will allow the agitating employees to hold the citizens of Jammu as hostages to make the government agree to their demands. The department should have put an alternative plan in place to supply water to the consumers in Jammu. The Rising Kashmir in its previous editorial had underlined that the consumers must get the value for their money as the payment of the water tariff has been streamlined and the consumers are paying their dues annually. The collapse of the water supply system cannot be allowed to collapse. It is leading to disruption in the normal lives of the employees and the students who have to attend their offices and educational institutions in time. It is a sad commentary on the part of the administration that when all efforts are being made to project Jammu as a smart city, development balloon is being punctured by rendering the entire Jammu waterless making the people fend for themselves. Smart City cannot be developed when all the necessary amenities are not provided to the masses. Both water and electricity supply constitute the basic barometers of such a city. Unfortunately, on both fronts there is no progress. Development of Jammu cannot be realised if the people are made to suffer for the non-availability of water that constitutes the basic amenity. Religious festivities are already on. People are fasting due to Ramadan and Eid is round the corner. People need to maintain the hygiene to perform their religious duties and prayers. Navratras are just a few days away. People have to perform their religious duties and fasting. And in this festival purity is of paramount importance. People are being subjected to unwanted harassment. Keeping the celebrations in view due to both the important festivals Eid and Navratras, the government must intervene and allow the people to celebrate their religious festivals without any shortage of water and electricity supply. There is a need to respect the religious sensitivities and basic consumer rights of the people. One more thing. The non-availability of water supply is causing sanitation problems .It can lead to viral infections and can compound the problems. We are already well versed about the devastation caused by the COVID-19 that devastated our lives. By disrupting the water supply to the people, the agitating employees are subjecting the masses to a great danger that can create serious health and hygiene issues. The administration must immediately swing into action and save the common masses from any impending disaster due to the non availability of drinking water in Jammu.