5,000 Maharashtra-owned wells to quench Marathwada’s thirst

AURANGABAD: In an unprecedented move, the Marathwada region, comprising eight districts, is planning to dig as many as 5,000 state-owned community wells to ease the water crisis.
The latest decision is a clear shift from the state’s earlier policy of funding the digging of private wells in the region that is already facing a severe shortage of water.
These wells are to be dug on priority in the villages, hamlets and towns that are currently dependent on water tankers to meet their drinking water needs. All these wells would be dug under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREGA) scheme. Apart from ensuring ‘sustainable’ development in the villages, the scheme will also provide employment to the locals, who are unable to find work in the farms due to scanty rainfall.
Currently, hundreds of villages and hamlets in the region are being supplied drinking water using 1,218 water tankers.
The water tankers are filled from different sources, including the 2,605 acquired wells in the eight districts of the Marathwada region.
The community wells being planned, apart from providing much-needed relief to the villagers will also bring down the number of water tankers in use over a period of time.
The directives have been issued to all the district collectors as well as the zilla parishad chief executive officers. They have been asked to ensure that the administrative approval for these wells is given before the model code of conduct for the upcoming assembly elections comes in to force in the state.
Considering the serious drought — caused by the absence of adequate rainfall — the decision to dig state-owned community wells has been taken by a high-powered committee chaired by Sunil Kendrekar, the Aurangabad divisional commissioner.
The committee, apart from asking the authorities to ensure a minimum of 600 wells in each of the eight districts, has given a free-hand to the district collectors as well as the zilla parishad CEOs to take a call on a higher number of community wells in the areas facing acute shortage of water.
As per the granted approval, the areas with lower population will be allotted Rs 5.32 lakh to dig each well. Meanwhile, the areas with higher population will be allotted Rs 6.98 lakh for each well.
The letter specifically has asked the authorities to ensure that no two different schemes for works under public water distribution should be carried out in a single go in any of the gram panchayats.
Also, instructions have been issued to take the technical, geographical aspects into consideration, before selecting a site for digging of the community wells.