By Dr Huidrom Romen
BISHNUPUR, April 26: Scarcity of water even for household use has been on the rise since the past many years and there is speculations that people will in the near future fight over water.
However, during such a time, when water scarcity has affected almost the whole state, there are few places still in the state, which have remained unaffected, largely due to the presence and proper maintenance of ponds and other water bodies.
One of such village, setting an example for others to follow instead of only waiting for the rain & authorities, is Ishok Village in Bishnupur district.
The village has a two acre large Ishok Awang Pukhri Achouba public pond. The pond was dug out some 30 years ago with (L) Tongbram Ibopishak and (L) Yumnam Thambalngou donating one acre each of land and with funding from the Local Area Development fund of the then local MLA Th Chaoba.
The pond is maintained by the Social Development Institute with an annual donation of Rs 10/20 from each household of the locality and some other public donations.
Each year, during the monsoon season, water from the nearby rivers is fed to the pond. The water is also treated with bleaching powder and lime.
The locals have been drawing water from the pond for their household use, even for drinking purposes.
Since, the Sanapat Water Supply Scheme has not been working for the past 27 years of its 30 years existence; the villagers had initiated maintenance of the four hectares large pond in their locality and been guarding the pond.
Seram Sunil president Social Development Institute appealed to the concerned authorities to ensure provision of safe drinking water to the people of Ishok which is a basic fundamental right of the citizens.
Due to its proximity to the Loktak Lake, the village is inundated whenever it rains, making it hard for the people of get safe drinking water, he lamented.
He lamented that the employees of the concerned department seem to be waiting only for their salaries as they have allowed the Sanapat Water Supply Scheme to be dysfunctional for 27 years.
With the pond fed with enough water to last one whole year according to the requirement of the area, there is not much problem for the people, even as other parts of the state continue to.
The villagers of Ishok have today shown that a little sacrifice and understanding on the part of people can meet any adversity.
Speaking to this IFP correspondent, a villager said people should understand that a well maintained pond or water body is requisite for every village, as we have been facing water supply shortage every year.
If the people continue to wait only for the government to do something without thinking of taking up initiatives to meet the problems, they would have to suffer, she said.
However, others had joined her in appealing to the concerned authorities to make the Sanapat Water Supply Scheme working again so as to provide safe and potable water for the people of the state. They commented that for a healthy society, safe and pure drinking water is much needed.