AGARTALA, March 18 (TIWN): Clean, safe drinking water is scarce. Today, most of the rural people in the so called model Tripura don't have access to it. Yet, we take it for granted, we waste it, and we even pay too much to drink it from little plastic bottles. The tribal communities under Buchcha para of Sukhchari ADC village and the tribals along the Indo-Bangla bordering village under Chamanu Block are suffering from a massive scarcity of water at the beginning of a dry spell. While, the concerned administration rests in a long yawning siesta. Besides, recently the tribal villagers in the rural areas witnessed to be suffering from water borne diseases, with collecting water from nearby polluted rivers, small fountains and other minor water bodies, that consists of major pollutants.

The problem of water scarcity is a growing one in the rural Tripura, especially in the villages like Wakiram Roaja Para, Naysa Ram, Kontomoni, Sachindra, Tarona Kumar, Purba Gobindabari, Pashchim Gobindabari, Purba Malidhar, Singabhag tribal village under Rajdhar Panchayat, and other villages under Chamanu Block. The people of those rural areas doesn’t have access to any source of drinking water including ring wells, Mark II deep tube wells and other water bodies, other than polluted rivers and water bodies consisting of major pollutants. The areas are mostly tribal dominated. The villagers, mostly from indigenous origin, manage their stock of drinking water by crating holes inside the hilly craters, allowing spaces to be filled with the dripping water. However this has now given birth to the water borne diseases with most of the tribal people suffering from diarrhea, malaria and other water borne diseases.

However, previous year during the last of the month of February, the concerned administration of the mentioned villages has made arrangements of water tankers to supply safe drinking water for the villagers. But this year no such arrangements has been made yet today and on the other the dry spell has already began with the villagers suffering from a massive scarcity of water.

On the other, the lack of electricity has gripped the Buchcha para of Sukhchari ADC village with the villagers suffering at large, and has been deprived at large.  The people of the Chakma community demanded electricity and safe drinking water at their village. But, according to the sources, a section of unruly contractors has withdrawn the bill amount without completion of any extension of electric line there at the village.

Besides, it is to be mentioned here that the beginning of the dry spell has recently brought the villagers under heavy suffering.