Gasso reservoir rendered defunct

Srinagar, Apr 26: Residents of Gasso and its adjoining areas in Hazratbal have expressed resentment over acute shortage of drinking water supply from the last several months.

The locals said that the decades-old water reservoir at Gasso, which has been supplying water to the area, developed some issues and water supply to their locality has been hit.

The locals blamed the dilapidated condition of the water reservoir for the disruption of the water supply.

“Officials have now temporarily connected us to  Hadoora Ganderbal supply which is inadequate as hundreds of households depend on it. The few-inch pipe is hardly enough to bring water, which is supplied to us on an hourly basis. We are unable to carry out our daily chores,” said a local.

The locals said that they had to rely on mobile water tankers, which did not suffice. They said they have been suffering since the holy month of Ramadhan while officials are unmoved.

“We are charged the same amount for water supply as others in Srinagar, but we are still being neglected. Patients, children, and women are mostly facing the brunt. We have to store water in buckets and other containers to survive. How are we supposed to carry out our day-to-day work?” asked Fayaz Ahmad, a local in the area.

Zahoor Ahmad Dar, the village head in the area, said that they reached out to the administration but to no avail. He said that schools and mosques in the area don’t have a water supply. He said around 800 households are facing immense hardship due to the issue.

“The water reservoir has been a total failure for years, but recently, it became totally defunct. Even when it was working, we had no proper water supply. Whenever there was a disruption in electricity, the supply was defunct because of that. The water supply started decades back for a handful of households in Gasso, but over time, new colonies and areas adjacent to Gasso, including the Inderhama locality, were connected to it. Now, ironically, no one is getting any supply,” Dar said.

Executive Engineer PHE Samiullah Beigh acknowledged the issue and said they have provided the area with an alternative line. He said Gasso’s own water supply scheme will also be fixed in the coming weeks.

“We have supplied more water than our capacity at Hadoora Water Supply. We are also pressing water tankers in the area where there is an issue. In the coming days, we will fix the issue with Gasso’s water supply scheme, which has been brought to the notice of Chief Engineer PHE. We will also add a new water supply scheme to the area so that the issue will be permanently solved,” Beigh said.