RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Dec.9: The initiative of Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) to help people consume safe drinking water has failed.
This was reflected after a short visit to a community drinking water purifier plant installed five years ago at Jai Prakash Nagar in Mandhukam, popular as Chuna Bhatta, under ward no.28, and an outside survey of the plant.
The plant, surrounded by shelter homes for the poor, Rain Basera, Royal‘s Bud Public School and Vishwakarma Community Centre, was found locked so no one took its care. Clothes spread on its boundary net suggested it has turned into a place to dry wet clothes instead of a centre to get pure water.
An octogenarian, Parmeshwar Sharma, selling biscuits and chips in a kiosk near the plant supported the observation, sharing a few details remembering how useful the plant was for the poor residing in the locality.
“Iron content is found in big quantities in the underground water. After the plant was installed it was a great help to local residents. One used to get 20 litres of purified water for Rs 7 from this plant. The plant ran for two years as far as I remember but later it became non-functional. An agency of Hyderabad, which was looking after it, raised its hand saying anti-social elements of the locality will not allow this plant to run. For the last three years, the plant has been non-functional and poor,” Sharma said.
Municipal Commissioner Mukesh Kumar could not be available for his comments.
Contacted the executive engineer of the water board of Ranchi Municipal Corporation, P.K.Murmu, for his comment on the matter, he admitted the failure.
“It was planned that the plant will be installed at 10 places across the city. Out of 10, 6 plants were installed. Out of six hardly one or two could become operational. Now none of them are operational. The agency hired for the work could not work,” Murmu said, admitting the failure.
Asked executive engineer Murmu whether the civic authorities have any plan to revive the plant, he said ‘no’ adding that ‘a fresh initiative is required to be taken for the work but so far there is no discussion in this regard.’
A high court lawyer, Arvind Kumar Lall, who resides hardly one kilometer away from the plant, said he was one of the consumers of this purified water and after the water purifier plant became non-functional he had to spend more to get pure water.
