Now, the residents of Thoothukudi have started feeling the pinch of drinking water crisis, which is looming over several parts of the Corporation area.
The people are experiencing a tough time as water is supplied only once in eight days or even beyond that. While the temperature is soaring high, many residents are increasingly finding it difficult to get sufficient quantum of drinking water in the 60-ward Corporation.
M.S. Muthu, district secretary, Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), who resides in the second street of Bryant Nagar, said water was supplied once in 10 or 11 days.
Moreover, the residents were not sure of the timing of the supply. Hence, they had got no alternative to waiting for long hours at the pumping station with empty pots to collect water.
Since water supply was unreliable, most of the households stored water in containers when it was supplied. But, the water thus collected in containers got contaminated it four or five days. The people had been eagerly awaiting the completion of the fourth drinking water pipeline project, which was started four years ago but kept on dragging, he also said.
M. Balasubramanian, councillor of ward 46, said even during the period of delayed water supply, tail-end residents could get water only long time after the supply started for other areas. The supply to tail-end area would also stop soon.
Hence, the authorities concerned should do something to ensure proper and uniform supply of drinking water to all areas, he demanded.
Corporation Executive Engineer A. Lakshmanan told The Hindu that whenever a problem occurred in water supply carrier, it consumed more time to fix it and reconnect the pipeline along Palayamkottai Highway. Moreover, frequent power cuts in main water head works at Vallanadu also aggravated the problem, he said.
