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Water
shortage in Dharamshala's
Heritage Village
by Hemant Chauhan
Dharamshala:
Facing an acute shortage of water, Dharamshala's "The Heritage Village"
has issued an appeal for help from any quarter. Unable to arrange enough
water to cope up with their daily needs, people are now buying water from
private water tanker suppliers. Be it the Heritage Village or any other
part of Dharamshala district, it's a common sight to find several women
moving from one place to another for water or standing in queue waiting
for their turn to fill a bucket. The water crisis has gripped various
areas of Dharamshala as traditional water sources have started drying
up because of the dry spell and inadequate rain during winter. "There
is a big water shortage here. We cannot cook food, bath and wash our clothes.
There is no water for the pets also. We have to go miles to get water,"
said Sreshia, a housewife. "I am selling water but I do not derive much
profit out of it. I sell water at three rupees per vessel. I have to travel
four to five kilometres to fill my tankers. They charge one fifty rupees
per tanker and I have to spend money for the petrol. The Government is
doing nothing about the water crisis," said Sunny, water seller The lack
of water has been caused by a poor snowfall last year. Global warming
has led to a lesser number of glaciers melting in summer in the higher
reaches of Himachal Pradesh. But officials say they have prepared a strategy
to overcome the crisis. "There are many pockets in the districts where
there is water scarcity due to unprecedented drought situation which we
have faced this year. In fact the drought situation is much more worse
than the past forty five years. We have a solution and we are working
for it. We have also formulated a strategy, both for long-term as well
as the short term to tackle the water crisis," said Bharat Khera, the
Deputy Commissioner of Kangra District.
-May 15, 2006
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