Water problems solved on paper
Some officials of the Water Board seem to have found an easy way to solve the problem of water contamination in the city. Citizens complain that they have received SMSes from officials stating that the water pollution complaints lodged by them have been attended to and the problem solved.
“I was shocked to receive the SMS on my mobile phone stating that the water pollution problem in my area has been solved. How is it possible when no official has visited my area? What’s more, I am the complainant and none of the officials contacted me to even cross check or confirm whether the water pollution complaint has been attended to before sending me that SMS,” said C. Shankar, a resident of Old Ghansmandi.
Mr Shankar had lodged a complaint on May 17 and was given token number 8026. On May 21, he received the SMS saying the problem had been solved. The consumer account number given by Mr Shankar is in the name of Abdul Majeed. Water Board officials came out into the field and started digging to find the pollution causing point only after local MLA M. Shashidhar Reddy intervened after Mr Shankar brought the issue to his notice.
Social activist and advocate Venu Gopal said there should be an enquiry into how officials are claiming to have set right the problem when it still persists. He says polluted water is a serious problem as it puts peoples’ health at risk. Secondly, it’s possible that some officials could be pocketing the money that they claim has been spent on replacing pollution causing pipelines and showing on paper that the work has been done.
Enquiries by this correspondent revealed that the Metro Customer Care Centre of the Water Board receives on an average 150 complaints every week about polluted water supply in summer. The Water Board managing director, Adhar Sinha, reviews the action taken reports every week on complaints lodged with the metro cell, particularly those to do with water pollution. As such, officials make it a point to show 100 per cent attendance to and rectification of pollution complaints.
Telugu Desam corporator Singireddy Srinivas said the same is the case with water tankers. “If you book a mobile tanker at the metro customer care centre of Water Board, you will immediately get an SMS stating the water will be delivered within 10 hours. But that does not happen. You have to wait for three to four days and personally go to the filling station to get the water delivered,” he said. When contacted, Water Board in charge director (technical) Sundar Ram Reddy said that pollution related complaints are usually attended to and promised to take action on erring officials.
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