In ‘Har Ghar Jal’ Goa, PWD minister’s backyard depends on tankers

SANVORDEM: On Friday, the Union ministry of jal shakti announced that Goa became the first state in India to cover 100% of its 2.3 lakh rural households with functional household tap connections. CM Pramod Sawant basked in the laurel, while PWD minister Deepak Pauskar said the achievement earned Goa additional funds to set up water treatment plants in every taluka.
But for residents of around 800 households in Ambeudok and surrounding wards in the PWD minister’s own constituency of Sanvordem, these announcements of Goa's success in Har Ghar Jal — the Centre's scheme to provide tap water to every rural household — are empty words.
Sandeep Prabhu Pauskar, Sanvordem sarpanch and brother of the PWD minister, admits that piped water supply is yet to reach this part of rural Goa.
“It is a long-pending problem in this area,” he said. “This area has been without water supply since Goa’s Liberation. Our target was to provide piped water supply to Ambeudok and surrounding areas by May 2020. But the work got held up due to the lockdown and resulting labour shortage. Now, our aim is to provide piped supply to the area by December, or latest by January 2021.”
He said that under the JICA project, work on two overhead water tanks has been completed, while that on a third is currently in progress.
JICA refers to the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which funds some water-related projects executed by the government.
“Half the pipeline network has been laid in the area,” the sarpanch said.
For all his life, water supply for 32-year-old Maruti Naik has meant the tankers that come by his home two-three times a week. The mornings the tanker arrives are marked by quarrels, to get the supplier to empty a few more litres of water into the blue plastic barrels stationed outside every house.
“This has been the state of every household in Ambeudok, Periudok, and Guddemol,” said Naik. “For years now, we have only been hearing of deadlines from the government for completion of water tanks and laying of water supply pipelines with JICA funds. Work on one overhead water tank is still not finished. Meanwhile, in the monsoon, the tankers make even fewer trips.”
As this part of Sanvordem makes up South Goa’s mining belt, mining companies would supply water to households here while iron ore extraction was on. Thus, the state government did not prioritise providing piped water in Ambeudok and surrounding areas. Water shortage became a major issue when mining came to a halt from March 16, 2018 after a Supreme Court order.
Soon, mining companies stopped water supply by tankers, and it was left to the PWD to take over.
“It is a shame that Ambeudok has ‘water’ as part of its name (udok being Konkani for water) and we are struggling for water supply,” said Chetali, Naik’s wife. “I was told nine months ago, before I was to marry here, that piped water supply connections would be provided sometime soon. Nine months later, there is no sign of things improving.”
Another villager, Sanam Naik, said that a handful of the affected households had been provided tap connections some years ago, supply for which would come from a borewell dug nearby.
“But it did not last long,” she said. “Due to mining, the water table went down, and taps ran dry. There are wells, but in Ambeudok itself, there is one well for 200 households. From my home, it is around a kilometre away, so the better option is to haggle with the tanker driver for more water.”