`Come to be taught, go to serve` reads the entrance wall of Bikapanga Upper Primary School in Tumudibandha block of Kandhamal district. Only 32 kids research right here from Class 1 to eight, but these few are pressured to `serve` themselves as services are onerous to return by. The faculty doesn’t have entry to protected ingesting water, and the girls and boys should fetch water from the closest canal in the event that they wish to use the bathroom. “We have not seen any improvement in facilities, though the school was established in 1977. Even a tube well is not present,” lamented Arjuna Majhi, the father or mother of a scholar. Water shortage is a standard thread operating by the tribal villages of Kandhamal. To alleviate struggling, the Odisha authorities had promised faucet water connections beneath the centrally sponsored Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) to all colleges and anganwadi centres by 2022. However, that promise is but to be fulfilled.
Manoj Kumar Samantaray, a Bhubaneswar-based researcher on water, sanitation and hygiene, was unsurprised by the sluggish tempo of the JJM. “Providing safe drinking water to tribal villages through the JJM is a complex task. There are several challenges on the way, including geographical barriers, lack of infrastructure, limited awareness, cultural barriers and funding constraints. Only by understanding and addressing the specific challenges faced by each community can the scheme become successful,” he stated.When requested in regards to the infrastructure hole, Kandhamal District Education Officer Pramod Kumar Sadangi instructed 101Reporters that every one efforts had been being made to make sure water provide to varsities. “Wherever required, immediate action will be taken to repair and rebuild water infrastructure. Schools have been closed from April 21 onwards to ensure the safety and health of students as day temperatures have soared to 38-41 degree Celsius,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Arjuna, who can be the president of Bikapanga faculty administration committee, stated the issue was not restricted to water availability. “Students from Class 1 to 8 are put up in the same place as only three classrooms are present in the school. Of them, two are in a dilapidated condition. Despite approaching the authorities several times, no action has been taken.”
A pailful of grievance
Sumitra Majhi (36) has been trekking 2.5 km to fetch water for therefore many summers now that it’s tough to maintain a rely. “Water is a privilege. We women have to walk long distances even for a pail of water,” stated Sumitra, a resident of Sapari in Tumudibandha block.
The hilly and forested Sapari tribal hamlet is residence to 165 individuals in 38 households, nevertheless it by no means had entry to protected ingesting water. The two tube wells within the neighborhood are defunct. “Tube wells stopped working in 2019. Our repeated requests to fix them were simply ignored. The authorities should prioritise this matter as access to safe drinking water is a fundamental right,” stated Swarnalata Mallick, the sarpanch of Kurtamgarh gram panchayat beneath which Sapari falls.
However, Kedendi Majhi, a ward member from Sapari, blamed the sarpanch. “There is no response to our requests to repair the defunct tube wells. What shall we do?” he asks. In response, Though Mallick stated the issue can be addressed on the earliest, she didn’t present any details about the progress of restore work.
“Every summer, we hope against hope that this struggle will not repeat. We have to struggle for every drop of water,” rued Digamandala Majhi of Gunsupa. The villagers, principally from the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group of Kutia Kondh, are pressured to stroll as much as a km to fetch water from a puddle.
“The villagers boil the contaminated water, but there is always a health risk,” stated Dibakar Sabar, an activist from Jana Jagarana Mancha.
Fed up with the annual battle, ladies and teenage women in a whole lot had gathered for a rally at Tumudibandha and Kotagarh block headquarters on March 22, in search of protected ingesting water and higher anganwadi services.
Meanwhile, Ajit Kumar Behera, Executive Engineer, Rural Water Supply and Sanitation, Kandhamal, instructed 101Reporters that sarpanches have been instructed to establish places the place hand pumps wanted restore or new tube wells needs to be dug. “This will help us allocate resources effectively and efficiently as two mega water projects serving more than 100 villages each are on the anvil. We are currently finalising tenders for single-village projects and soon work will begin on them,” he knowledgeable.
Decoding information
A latest research by Atmashakti Trust and its allies on the standing of protected ingesting water in 9,856 villages in 15 districts of Odisha paints a scary image. As many as 9,37,152 households and 32,960 tube wells had been included within the survey, which discovered that 4 out of each 10 homes lacked entry to protected ingesting water. Four out of each 10 tube wells and virtually half of the hand pumps surveyed had been defunct. In phrases of share, 40.55 per cent households had no protected ingesting water entry, whereas 40.93 per cent tube wells and 48.6 per cent hand pumps had been defunct.
According to the federal government information, solely 45 per cent of rural households in Odisha have piped water entry. “The government claims water sufficiency, while villagers continue to struggle,” stated Rayagada-based Debendra Suna, one other activist from Jana Jagarana Manch.
In Baladia village of Rayagada, over 80 households make do with one tube nicely and photo voltaic hand pump. The tube nicely can not elevate water from the rocky soil, regardless of digging to a depth of 60 to 80 ft. “Animals drink water from the canal, but it is our only source of water. It is unfit for consumption, but we have no choice. During rains, we get sick from drinking this muddy water,” stated Satya Praska (28), a ward member from Baladia.
Things are worse in Nunduruguda, the place villagers depend upon chuan (puddle-like floor water supply) to satisfy their water wants. “This is the only water source at our disposal. When one chuan dries up, we dig another near a canal or riverbed. When all sources dry up in summer, we have to walk to the neighbouring villages,” says Jayanta Urlaka (32). They retailer water in big clay pots in summers, however it’ll final just for 10 to fifteen days.
“Gruelling summer will only accentuate the crisis in water-starved villages unless the government takes swift action,” warned Laxmidhar Singh, a member of the Indigenous Peoples Forum.
Helpline of no assist
A devoted helpline quantity 1916 is run as part of the Buxi Jagabandhu Assured Water Supply to Habitations (BASUDHA) scheme, stated Hadibandhu Behera, a former chief engineer with the RWSS. “Mobile vans to repair defunct water infrastructure are also present.”
However, persons are largely unaware of it. “I am hearing about this helpline for the first time. If the government had informed us, we would have definitely made use of this facility,” stated Digamandal Majhi, a resident of Deredi in Kandhamal. At the identical time, Santanu Patra, who works with Jeevika Suraksha Mancha, reminded that there are a number of distant tribal villages with out cellular community protection.
The state authorities is primarily specializing in the BASUDHA scheme, and has constructed new water provide techniques, repaired current ones, and arrange water remedy crops in numerous elements of the state.
Under the JJM, the federal government goals to supply faucet water connections to each rural family by 2024. For this, the Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Department have proposed a funds allocation of Rs 5,750 crore beneath the JJM, Rs 4,002 crore beneath the BASUDHA scheme, and Rs 1,000 crore beneath the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund for the upcoming monetary yr.
(Naba Kishor Pujari is a Bhubaneshwar-based freelance journalist and a member of 101Reporters, a pan-India community of grassroots reporters)
