Namchi, 07th September 2023: The villagers of upper belt of Sadam-Suntaley GPU and nearby areas have complained that the works of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) are incomplete, and the water pipes are still not reaching the concrete taps made under JJM a few weeks back.

The people living there receive water only once a month, and the rest of the days, the people are forced to carry water from far-off sources for drinking and cleaning, the villagers have also shared.

The villagers of this region are mostly dependent on farming to make their living, but even after the implementation of various government schemes, people are dependent on rainwater for irrigation of their crops, the villagers have also said.

On the other hand, the panchayat president of Sadam-Rabitar, Kala Chettri, when talking to a local reporter have said that “eventhough it is rainy season, and there are floods damaging lives in the country, the villages in Sadam-Rabitar and Sadam-Suntaley, have very less sources of water, and higher number of households in the region which have led to the limited usage of water”, she have said. She have also said that the natural source of water is quite far, and the water brought to the village from it have to be distributed to large number of households. The villagers are required to store water to meet their everyday needs, she have said.

The panchayat president of Sadam-Rabitar, Kala Chettri, have also said that people of this region are dependent on rainwater for irrigation of the seasonal crops and during winter, till March and April Months, it becomes harder for people to do cultivation of lands.

Kala Chettri have also said that water to every household comes from source for one time in every three days, for the maximum of 2hours, and the people have to store the water for using till they get water again.

While mentioning, that the works of Jal Jeevan Mission in Sadam-Rabitar and Sadam-Suntaley; especially to reach one tap to to every household, Kala Chettri have mentioned that the works are still going on, but the water distribution is still at its minimum, because of the lack of water source, and the villagers are still following the system of getting water once every three days.

While mentioning that the people are storing water in tanks provided through MG-NEREGA schemes, Kala Chettri have said, that rainwater harvesting have been initiated in some places of the region, and have said that the villagers hope that more water sources from Solophok Namchi, or other places will be outsourced by the government.

On the other hand, the president of an NGO, Saipatri Sangh of Sadam, Birbal Chettri, have said, that people of Manghim GPU, gets water in their homes, for about one hour at night time, once a month.

He have also mentioned that, eventhough, the works of JJM are being done in the GPU, they hope that the chief minister of Sikkim, and JJM will soon bring the end to the scarcity of water in the region.

On the other hand, the district collector of Namchi, M Bharani Kumar, IAS, last week from his office have replied that 70-80 per cent of the JJM works have been completed in the region, and have explained that the last date for the completion of Jal Jeevan Mission works in Sikkim is on December 31, this year, which he have said will be completed, in every region of Namchi District.

Although, the government schemes are reaching out to every block and ward level families of Sikkim, from both the state as well as national level of schemes, the scarcity of water is not new to Namchi District, and the people may have to participate in waiting scenario of regular hours of water coming to their homes.