Statesman News Service
MALDA, Nov 18: The English Bazaar Municipality (EBM) has finally called off the arsenic free drinking water supply project due to technical reasons said the the vice chairman of EBM, Mr Dulal Sarkar. This project had been proposed by the minister for municipal affairs, Mr Asok Bhattacharya.
A few months ago, Mr. Bhattacharya had ensured the civic body officials that his department would allot funds for the arsenic free drinking water project here. They had also asked the then district magistrate to hold a meeting with the public health engineering (PHE) officials and civic body officials to chalk out a scheme. Their objective was to bring excess drinking water from a rural surface water treatment project to the people in Malda town.
After a meeting, it was decided that the civic body would provide a place where the PHE body would supply drinking water from its rural project at Niamatpur in English Bazaar block. The PHE will also prepare a scheme in a selected place in English Bazaar town.
However, recently after a joint survey by the civic body and PHE officials, it was revealed that the quantity of water which would be supplied from the rural project will not be sufficient for a single ward in EBM.
“Not only is the estimated cost of that project too high but also it will not serve the purpose of the people in the future. As a result we have decided to drop the project,” said Mr Dulal Sarkar.
Mr. Sarkar further said that the municipal engineering officials were preparing another surface water project separately which involves lifting water from the confluence point of the Mahananda and Kalindri rivers in this town.
A few days ago, the civic body collected a certificate from the district irrigation department regarding the availability of water in the Mahananda River all through the year and sent it to the chief engineer of the municipal engineering department in Kolkata, sources said.
According to Mr Sarkar, the chairman of the EBM, Mr Narendranath Tiwari has approached the chief minister Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee about the proposed surface water treatment plant seeking his interference for implementation. At present, the civic body needs to collect over 2 lakh gallon water every day and the municipality is completely dependent on water lifting from underground channels.
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