In wake of the prevailing dry weather conditions in the Union Territory of J&K, the Deputy Commissioner (DC) Bandipora, Shakeel Ul Rehman today directed officers of Jal Shakti, Irrigation and Flood Control and Mechanical Irrigation departments to take all necessary measures to ensure adequate supply of drinking water across district Bandipora.
Chairperson, District Development Council, Bandipora, Abdul Gani Bhat, and Deputy Commissioner Bandipora jointly convened a meeting today at VC Room of Mini-Secretariat, Bandipora, to assess the current situation regarding the availability of drinking water and irrigation facilities across the district.
In the meeting, DC said he had received complaints from various villages about insufficient drinking water supply and lack of irrigation facility for the crops. The DC instructed Ex. Engineer PHE Bandipora/ Sumbal to hire 10 additional water tankers for the augmentation of drinking water supply across the various water stressed areas of the district.
It was given out that Five tankers each have been approved for Sub Division Sumbal and Sub Division Bandipora under SDRF component to mitigate the shortage of drinking water in various areas like Malangam, Pethkoot, Guzarbal, Nowgam, Shilvat and other areas, as and when required. He asked Sub Divisional Magistrates, Executive Engineers of PHE, MID, I&FC to review the situation regularly and address all drought-related complaints, assuring them there is no dearth of funds to address issues related to drinking water supply.
He said officials must work in close coordination to ensure effective management of the situation and be proactive in addressing the public demands and concerns. The DC also instructed officials of the Mechanical Irrigation Department to use Mobile irrigation pumps for watering the crops and ensure regular supply of irrigation facilities.
He directed for the lifting of water from the nearby sources by using gen sets and assured that fuel requirements in this regard shall be provided by the district administration. The concerned departments were also told to cover all abandoned or defunct bore wells so as to avoid any untoward incidents.
He stressed that only clean and fresh sources of water should be used to maintain the hygiene and to prevent water-borne diseases. The meeting was attended by Additional Deputy Commissioner, Umar Shafi Pandith; ACR, Shabir Ahmed Wani; Ex. Engineers of PHE and I&FC, CPO Bandipora and virtually by Chief Engineer Jal Shakti, SDM Sumbal, SDM Gurez, besides other officials.