MOULVIBAZAR Apr t About 85 per cent subscribers to the town water supply service at Moulvibazar district town lias been deprived of wa ter for nearly eight months.

Acute scarcity of drinking water has been prevailing In Moulvibazar town as two, out of three deep tubewells remained out of order, causing extreme sufferings to the town dwellers.

Even after eight months passed. th?re was no Initiative to repair or install new tube-wells by the authority concerned though, the authority claimed they are trying to their level best to overcome the situation. But all of such activities have been limited to paper works only, It is alleged.

Few shallow tubewells have, been installed In the town by the local pourasava to meet the demand of drinking water. But such action of the pourasava is not the proper solution to the problem facing by the town dwellers.

Residents of the town said that shallow tubewells cannot be the substitute of pipe line water supply system, as these

shallow tubewelis has been installed on area basis, which could not meet the demand of the majority of the consumers.

It Is learnt from the Public Health Engineering Department source that the daily demand of drinking water in the town are ten lakh gallons. But only two lakh gallons have been being supplied through pipe lines since August 1994. There was only three deep tubewells for the pipe line service ot water. On August 1994. two of them went out of order and yet to be repaired. The only deep tubewell now provides water to 531 households — 15 per cent of the total subscribers.

Earlier in 1989-90 financial year, a new scheme was taken under the 18 towns water supply and sanitation project. Estimated cost of the scheme was Taka five crore and five lakh, aided by the Dutch'government. But the implementa-Uon work of,the scheme is yet . to be started. It is more interesting that, administrative office of the Moulvibazar water supply and sanitation project is located at Manikganj district and Its mechanical unit office

at Comilla.

Finance Minister M Salfur Rahman" laid the foundation stone of the water supply pro-. Ject on February 18. .1995. under the 18 town water supply and sanitation project. But after the laying of foundation stone, no progress has yet been shown.

A source of the local Public Health Engineering Depart-ment (PHED) told The Daily Star that th^re was no allocation for repairing the old deep tubewells as the authority has taken up the new scheme to set up modern water supply system. So there was no initiative to repair old deep tubewells Avhich went out of order.

The PHED official, however. claimed the local PHED trying to solve the recent water crisis by installation of shallow tubewells with the cooperation of the Moulvibazar pourasava.

Town dwellers of Moulvibazar expect that the authorities concerned should take necessary steps to implement the 18 town water supply and sanitation project without any further delay.