15 Years Of Quarrying Leaves Villages In Anakapalli District Thirsty, Ill
Macchuporugedda stream used to be once a steady source of water for Seetha Bandhalu. It has completely dried up due to quarrying activity. Villagers now rely on unsafe water.
VISAKHAPATNAM: Quarrying of granite around Chinna Goregadda, Peddagurugadda and Seetha Bandhalu under Auruwada panchayat in V. Madugula mandal of Anakapalli district has left the three villages with no water or polluted water.
Among them, Chinna Goregadda is home to 28 families of Konda Dora community. Its resident Bhavani explained that nearly 10 granite quarries have been operating in the Auruwada panchayat for the past 15 years. In Chinna Goregadda, Peddagurugadda and Seetha Bandhalu villages alone, there are six quarries extracting colour granite.
In the past, hand pumps in the three villages yielded drinking water at depths of just 40 feet. Now, most borewells have dried up. Those drilled to depths of 200 metres are yielding only contaminated water.
Macchuporugedda stream used to be once a steady source of water for Seetha Bandhalu. It has completely dried up due to quarrying activity. Villagers now rely on unsafe water.
Residents of Chinna Goregadda, Peddagurugadda and Seetha Bandhalu say contaminated water is causing serious health problems for them. Many attribute the pollution to granite quarrying in the surrounding areas.
Villagers have repeatedly urged the panchayat and mandal authorities to set up a mineral water plant to serve the affected villages. Rajababu, a villager, has appealed to the Narsipatnam revenue divisional officer (RDO) to personally visit and inspect the water available for consumption in Goregadda.
In this regard, CPM leader K. Govinda Rao pointed out that a memorandum has been submitted to the Narsipatnam RDO. Rao warned that if no action is taken, villagers will carry the samples of polluted water and present it to Anakapalli district collector’s office to highlight their issue.
E. Narasimha Murthy, representing the Vyavasaya Karmika Sangham, recalled a village meeting held years ago to discuss environmental clearance for granite extraction. That meeting, facilitated by the Narsipatnam RDO and Environment executive engineer, led to several assurances. None of them have been implemented.
