Jalamani, a scheme aimed at providing safe drinking water to students in schools, has failed to take off completely due to reported apathy shown by the Union Government towards the scheme.
Under the scheme, an RO plant would be set up in schools which have continuous supply of water and power. The plant would filter and supply the water to students.
The first phase of the scheme was launched about five years ago. Though about 156 units were sanctioned at a cost of Rs. 20,0000 each, only 150 units were established. Moreover, only 50 per cent of the amount was paid for each of the units with a condition that the remaining amount would be paid in the next five years based on the performance of the units.
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The headmasters of schools, who are expected to take care of the water supply, would submit a report on the functioning of these units soon.
According to sources in the Rural Water Supply (RWS) Department, 99 units have been working and the rest have become dysfunctional, as per the latest report. The government has so far paid Rs. 17 lakh for these units.
In the second phase, the government aimed at establishing RO plants in 280 schools and only 80 units were established in 2013. Later, there was no progress in implementation of the scheme and the authorities claimed that they did not receive funds to do so.
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Among the established units, the one at Kandi School has been non-functional and it worked for only six months, according to the school teachers. But at present, the school is getting water from Manjeera pipeline that passes along the premises.
“The authorities gave us a cell number to contact if there was any problem with the system. But no one responds to the call,” said a teacher at Kandi School.
When asked about this, an RWS official said the units were established by a private firm and they would visit these schools and get them repaired.