ADILABAD: Hold-up of fund release for laying and repairing borewells in Adilabad under Mission Bhagiratha is ramping up pressure on the TRS MLAs, with residents of many villages facing hardships in securing safe drinking water during peak summer.
MLAs of the ruling party are presently requesting the state government to release special funds for the project due to repeated demands raised by residents.
Recently, Asifabad MLA Atram Sakku stepped in to release funds to provide drinking water to residents of villages in Lingapur, Sirpur (U), and Jainoor mandals.
A few MLAs from ST assembly constituencies had also approached K. T. Rama Rao, the minister for municipal administration and urban development, in this regard.
However, even in villages covered under Mission Bhagiratha, residents have often complained that they are receiving water once a week or once in 10 days due to damaged pipelines.
The issue is especially acute in hilly areas, where pipelines have been laid through rocky terrains and forests. Residents complain that the water pumping capacity is insufficient to ensure a continuous supply.
In Jainoor mandal, Kolam adivasis residing in Kondapatar village complained that they are forced to drink polluted water collected from improperly maintained wells. There are 36 families of Kolam adivasis residing in the village.
The issue came to light during a meeting of the Ushegam gram panchayat — from which Kondapatar is one kilometre away — on Friday. Only 90 of 115 habitations in Jainoor were receiving drinking water, that too, once a week, it was revealed.
In many instances, leakages were also attributed to a lack of field-level inspection by officials.
Meanwhile, Asifabad MLA Atram Sakku set a June 3 deadline to complete works under Mission Bhagiratha in the Jainoor mandal.
