Within 10 days of the district administration launching the much hyped Jal Drishti mobile App, which promises to keep a tab of water crisis and resolve complaints related to water supply, protest erupted in several colonies of Dhanbad including in Sriramnagar Colony of Dhansar and Putki area of Katras.

Over 100 residents of Sriramnagar colony of Dhansar Police station area gheraoed the house of Dhanbad MP PN Singh and former councilor of ward number 31, Suman Singh in Dhansar, which lies within four kilometers of the district headquarters, to protest against the lack of piped water supply in their area and contamination of ground water, which was affecting the hand pump water supply.

The protestors shouting slogans against the people’s representatives of Dhanbad Municipal Corporation charged that despite taking water connection more than two years back they are yet to receive a drop of piped water supply at their residence.

They also accused erroneous drain construction of their area, which often contaminates the ground water, thereby compelling residents to consume contaminated water that they get from the hand pumps.

Talking to the media, Suraj Singh, a octogenarian resident of the colony who also participated in the gherao-cum-demonstration said, “Our locality is in the colliery area and has limited ground water sources. We took Dhanbad Municipal Connection for water two years ago with high hopes of getting piped water of Maithon lake but have not received a single drop till date.”

He added, “Our problem has been aggravated recently due to erroneous drain construction in our area, which runs parallel with the water supply pipeline. Ruptured pipelines make the drain water contaminate our drinking water” said Singh.

“We carried out a protest here in front of the residence of Dhanbad MP, PN Singh and local councilor Suman Singh as the drain construction work took place through the Dhanbad Municipal Corporation fund and councilor being the people’s representative of the our area in Dhanbad Municipal Corporation was entrusted with supervision of all developmental works including the drain construction work” said Dilip Kumar, another resident of the Sriramnagar Colony charged. He added, “Such was the shoddy execution of drain construction work that hand pumps which were the sole source of water in colony have also been affected due to contamination of ground water and repeated complaints in this regard failed compelling us to come on the streets.”

Meanwhile, water supply being meted out to the residents by another civic body, Jharkhand Mineral Area Development Authority (JMADA) in Putki, Moonidih area has also been affected due to irregular water supply by Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited.

Md Asalam, in charge of Kusunda water supply division of JMADA said “Despite our best efforts to ensure water supply, regular power cuts is affecting the water supply in Putki area.”