Residents demand safe drinking water

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 18

Residents of the upmarket Homeland Society are demanding safe drinking water as the district administration has snapped the special connection of the canal water given during the last parliamentary polls and the RO plant installed by the promoter is providing supply which is below the prescribed standards.

Members of the Senior Citizens’ Welfare Society, consisting of approximately 150 families, mostly of retired gazetted officers, are running between the offices of the promoters, the Corporation and the Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) seeking clean drinking water besides certain other facilities which were promised before they were given the possession.

President of the society, HC Dutta, said, “The builder’s agreement with the PUDA clearly provided that the society would provide us with a community centre, primary school, dispensary, milk port, canal water and gas connections at our homes. None of the provisions has been honoured on ground.”

A retired DSP, IS Ghuman, said, “We have been living here for the last nine years approximately. However, even our roads have not been carpeted and the other facilities too are not there. Wild bushes grow rampantly within our residential premises. The builder has also allowed illegal construction of a dozen odd houses at different places, all over the society land, in clear violation of the original plans.” Municipal Commissioner Dalwinderjit Singh said, “We are not giving canal water to the society because they have not paid any money for the connection. I am not aware of any illegal connection being given to the society before I took over. However, I have communicated to the society members that they need to make the payment before seeking any facility.”

The manager of the housing society, said, “The problem of drinking water as claimed by the residents had arisen because they had combined their water supply which was being provided through two different pipes, one for drinking water and another for their washrooms.”

“Residents had been provided all facilities. However, road work was held up because of the winter. These will be executed once the weather improves. Certain public facilities were not working because of differences among different groups of the members.”