Bandipora, July 03 (KNO): The inhabitants of Nowgam village of Sumbal in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district on Friday morning held a protest demonstration against Jal Shakti Department for failing to provide drinking water to the residents from the last three months.
Talking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) the residents said water supply to their village has been snapped due to some technical snag for the past three months and they are being forced to consume contaminated water.
They said that they have to suffer a lot in absence of potable water supply and the women folk have to travel long distances to fetch water for drinking and other purposes.
The villagers said that they have many times apprised the concerned authorities many times but don’t pay any heed to their genuine grievances.
“We are being forced to hit the roads to press for our demands yet the concerned authorities don’t bother to address those grievances. We have been protesting since last week but nobody is paying heed to us,” said Habibullah Parrey, a local resident.
The villagers threatened to launch a massive agitation against Jal Shakti department and district administration if they failed to redress the issue at an earliest.
When contacted chief engineer, Jal Shakti Wahid Ahmad told KNO that the villagers had damaged some water pipes during a protest demonstration recently and it would take some time to restore them.
He said that they depute water tankers to the area regularly and the water supply will be restored in the affected area soon—(KNO)