Ganjem locals threaten to stop water plant work if PWD fails to regularise supply

Ponda: Residents of Ganjem in the Ponda taluka have threatened to stop the ongoing work on the 25MLD water treatment plant in the village if the authorities fail to regularise supply for the villagers by Monday.
Usgao-Ganjem sarpanch Narendra Gaonkar, who is also a panch member from Ganjem, said that his village is facing irregular water supply and blamed the public works department (PWD) for its carelessness.“The PWD staffers put on the pumps and leave and sometimes the pumps burn due to several reasons such as fluctuations in electricity,” he said.
Ganjem has a population of 450-odd people.
An official from the PWD’s water division said that they have installed a pump of 10 horsepower (HP) in the village. They draw water from Ganjem water scheme on the Mhadei river and supply it to the people after treating it using a pressure filter and chlorination process. They have a 25 cubic meter ground level reservoir (GLR) and they fill the GLR twice and release water throughout the day.
The official said that at present there is an issue because the submersible pump installed in the village was defunct with silt inserted in it. Due to heavy downpour, the washed off soil particles jammed the pump leading to stoppage of supply, he added.
Gaonkar said the problem repeats regularly and that they want clear assurance from senior officers.