Minister for PHE Irrigation and Flood Control Sham Lal Choudhary today said that 370 mark-II deep drilled hand pump are being installed in Jammu Province to overcome the shortage in water stressed areas.He said the installation work of 102 hand pumps stands completed, while work is in progress for the rest and is expected to complete during the current fiscal year.Replying to a question by Surinder Kumar Choudhary today in the Upper House, the Minister said hilly districts of the state viz Rajouri, Poonch, Kandi belt of Jammu, Doda , Kishtwar faced water shortage due to continuous dry spell and depletion of sources.
The Minister said the water supply to the affected areas lying on road side is being augmented through tanker service. He however said the shortage in the inaccessible areas is being met by rationalization of the available supply.The Minister further informed that government has initiated awareness campaign through "Community & Capacity Development Unit"(CCDU) to educate the people about the importance of water conservation.The Minister said that as of now there is no provision for funds to revive the water supply schemes which were designed for a period of 15 years. He however said if required new scheme are prepared for the areas where the existing schemes have completed the designed period.