For residents of Old Hospital Road in Coonoor, a 9-km. circuitous trip to a stream on the outskirts of the town to wash clothes, has become a weekly occurrence, as most parts of Coonoor are reeling under acute water crisis.
H Lalitha, a resident of ward number 9 in Coonoor Municipality, on Old Hospital Road, said that she prepares food in the morning and brings it with her to the stream, along with a pile of clothes that need washing at least once a week.
“We wash the clothes and also dry them near the stream, as the weight of carrying wet clothes would be too much for us to bear,” she said.
A significant number of families residing in the area have been forced to wash clothes in the stream. Lalitha’s husband, Hankumar, said that during weekends, an almost one km. stretch of the stream will be dotted with people, including men and children.
Other parts of Coonoor are also reeling from the water crisis.
K. Logambal, a bank employee residing on Cornwall Road, Coonoor, said that the water was last supplied to her home more than two weeks ago.
She said that even when released, the water is supplied during the middle of the night, for around three to four hours.
“We have bought two barrels for storage, and all the buckets and vessels in the house become storage vessels as we don’t know when water will be suppled next,” she added.
Residents said that the water crisis has been the worst they can recall in recent years. They said that while May and June are usually lean months when the water crisis is most acute, the problems usually cease by August.
Private water suppliers are charging anywhere between Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 1,500 for 2,000 litres of water, and because the side-streets in Coonoor are extremely narrow and are impassable for trucks, most homes do not even have the option of purchasing water.
Water is being drawn from check dams and streams, including the stream at Chinna Karumbalam.
“Till Tuesday, seven lorries have drawn more than 13 lakh litres of water from the stream since September 24. The water is transported to a municipality tank and supplied to homes,” said K Krishnan, who is working for a private lorry owner who has been contracted with transporting the water.
D Saravanakumar, the Coonoor Municipality Chairman, and Town Secretary of the AIADMK, says that there is a more than 40 percent shortfall in water supply.
“There is a demand for 35 lakh litres of water in Coonoor every day, but we are able to supply only 20 lakh litres to the residents,” he said. “Even the check dams are running out of water. Unless we get rain in the coming month, things will only get worse,” Mr. Saravanakumar added.
