Forced to drink contaminated water

Ministry of Special Initiative fails to set up water filtration plants in rural areas of the capital.

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Special Initiative has failed to set up water filtration plants in rural areas of the capital.

The project to set water filtration plants was initiated by the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration in 2007 but was later transferred to the Ministry of Special Initiative. Under the project, the filtration plants were to be set up in Bara Kahu, Tumir, Rawat, Shah Allah Dita, Phul Grah, Koral, Sihala, Sowan, Tarli, Kirpa, and Nilore. Residents of these localities had been complaining of unhygienic water that was leading to various waterborne diseases.

After the Ministry of Special Initiatives took up the project, filtration plants were set up in two union councils only: Tarli and Rawat. These too stopped functioning after a month.

The situation has brought the locals back to square one, as if the matter was never taken up by the authorities at all. They have little option but to continue to drink contaminated water.

“All of my family members are suffering from diarrhoea, gastroenteritis or skin infection because we have no option but to drink this water,” said Abrar Ahmad, a resident of Koral. He said it was unfortunate that the government had failed to provide basic necessities to the people. “If people living in the capital are in such conditions, I wonder what the situation of people in other cities is,” he added.

Project Director Clean Drinking Water for All (CDWA) of the Ministry of Special Initiative S A Khalid said the water filtration plants have not been set up because there is shortage of funds. On the directives of the Punjab government, the ministry is now focusing on establishing water filtration plants in flood affected areas, said Khalid. He said the promised project for the rural areas will continue as soon as funds are available.

Putting the blame entirely on the Ministry of Special Initiative, Assistant Director Local Government (ADLG) Hassan Abbas said the ministry had to install the water plants in different parts of the country, including rural areas of federal capital. “Our responsibility was to give them locations inside different union councils where the filtration plants were to be set up, which we provided,” he said.

Saleem Raza, a resident of Bara Kahu, said that since Islamabad was declared the federal capital, the civic authorities paid little attention to the neighbouring rural areas.  These areas are deprived of basic facilities like clean water, gas, health and education.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 24^th, 2010.