With summer around the corner, hundreds of families in the coastal areas of Vadakara municipality are facing water scarcity and saline water intrusion into water sources.
The water supplied by the Kerala Water Authority also has traces of salinity.
Residents said the KWA had been supplying water of poor quality for more than two years and there had been no efforts to address the issue. Since January, many families had been depending on the free supply of potable water by charitable organisations, they added.
Though KWA authorities claimed that they pumped water from Peruvannamoozhi reservoir to find a temporary solution to the issue, the quality of water available through the KWA pipelines remained the same. It has been learnt that the temporary supply of water from Peruvannamoozhi reservoir could stop any time as it might affect supply to other areas in the district.
“Last year, there were a number of agitations by coastal families to draw the attention of authorities to the water crisis. As the KWA failed to meet the demands, the last resort was the supply of free water by the Revenue Department using its new kiosks,” said Viswajith, a local activist. However, the supply by such groups was not sufficient to meet requirements, he added.
Water kiosks
Following public protest, the Revenue authorities had set up seven water kiosks last summer. But, the kiosks remained inactive.
The residents said bunds should be constructed in some locations to prevent the intrusion of saline water. They have also demanded steps to prevent the contamination of Gulikappuzha, one of the main sources of piped water in the area.
Resuming supply
The municipal authorities said they would take efforts to resume the supply of potable water in the most affected coastal regions. The support of the Revenue Department would be sought to clean the existing water kiosks in coastal areas and make available the required quantity of water every day throughout the summer season, they added.
Vadakara municipality vice chairperson K.P. Bindu said the construction of a regulator-cum-bridge at Perumcherikadavu was under the consideration to prevent saline water intrusion into Gulikappuzha.
