Residents of Panchkula and around complain of erratic drinking water supply

People living on the first and second floors are the worst sufferers, who are not able to fill their tanks in the limited water supply hours

At a time when mercury has touched 40 degrees, people living in Panchkula and adjoining villages have been complaining of erratic water supply since the beginning of June.

A woman from Bhudanpur village said that they had not been getting drinking water for the last many weeks and people had to walk a long distance to get some (AFP)

SK Nayar, president of the Citizens Welfare Association (CWA), said: “First, the drinking water supply is quite irregular. The timings are from 4am to 9am, but at times water comes late and only for a few hours. And even when there is supply, the pressure is too low.”

People living on the first and second floors are the worst sufferers, who are not able to fill their tanks. “People living on the ground floor are getting water but at very low pressure. However, those living on the first floor hardly get drinking water for about 15 to 30 minutes and those living on the second floor are totally deprived of the fresh drinking-water supply since the beginning of the month, when summer is at peak,” he said.

Nayar said that he was receiving complaints from residents on the daily. They approached the authorities concerned, but the situation had only worsened, he added. “For the last two days, I have been getting complaints from people getting worms in their tap water in Sector 15,” he said.

“In one of the pictures shared with me, a black thread-like creature was seen floating in drinking water. In another picture, the residents claimed a worm came out from the tap of the bathroom. This is a health hazard and residents should be cautious as the authorities are sitting silent,” Nayar said.

Problem persists even in villages

A woman from Bhudanpur said that they had not been getting drinking water for the last many weeks and people had to walk a long distance to get some.

When contacted, the official concerned did not revert.

Panchkula MLA Gian Chand Gupta said: “There was a problem in a few sectors as one of the motors was dysfunctional after the storm last week. But it was repaired and there is no such problem now.” He added, “When I went to Budhanpur and asked the people to tell me where exactly was the problem, They didn’t tell me.”