PULWAMA: The people of Ratnipora village in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district continue to struggle with water shortages despite the completion of a one lakh gallon filtration and distribution plant under the NABARD scheme. Villagers allege that the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department has delayed the formal inauguration of the project, keeping them deprived of regular tap water despite repeated promises.
According to locals, the scheme was sanctioned in 2022 under the Jal Jeevan Mission following persistent efforts by District Development Council (DDC) Kakapora, Abdul Qayoom Mir, and village elders. The project included laying pipelines, building a filtration plant, and strengthening the distribution system. The work, villagers said, was finished months ago, but water supply has still not started.
“For the last two years, officials have assured us that this scheme will resolve our drinking water crisis. The entire infrastructure was completed months back. Yet we are still waiting for a simple inauguration. It is disheartening that bureaucratic delays are keeping us without water in our homes,” said one villager.
Women in the locality, who shoulder the burden of fetching water for households, expressed particular frustration over the prolonged delay. “We have to stand in queues every alternate day for water tankers arranged by the authorities. Carrying buckets from the main road back home is exhausting. It is humiliating that in this day and age, we still struggle for drinking water,” a group of women lamented.
Villagers accused officials of ignoring their repeated appeals. “We have gone to the PHE office several times requesting that the scheme be inaugurated. The response is always that the project is ready, but the formal launch is pending. How long should we keep waiting?” locals questioned.
On being contacted, Executive Engineer PHE Mechanical Division Awantipora, Manzoor Ahmad Dar, confirmed that the scheme is complete from the mechanical side. “The filtration plant and all mechanical components have been tested. The system is fully functional and technically ready,” he said.
However, the civil wing of the department pointed to pending pipeline works as the reason for delay. While Executive Engineer PHE Civil Pulwama, Bilal Ahmad Malik, did not respond to calls, another senior official admitted the scheme was complete but awaited final pipeline connections. “The project is technically complete. Some fittings of the distribution network are still being aligned. This should take another week, after which water supply can begin,” the official said. [KNT]
