By Naba Bhattacharjee
Scarcity of water in Shillong has become an annual phenomenon during the dry months. This is also the season for legitimate public outcry and outrage over water stress conditions. There is a perennial stream of claims and blame game between concerned departments, uninterrupted flow of assertions that the problem is on the verge of solution and cascading commitment of perpetual flow to all household taps within “few” months. In this verbal gush of theory and hypothesis, a powerful lobby akin to the Sheikhs of oil rich countries, reigns supreme during the lean period. Similar to the oil barons who control oil flow and price through OPEC, the water flow is regulated by Organization of Plumber Enabled Control (OPEC). The much feared and valued plumbers are most sought after and no sensible resident of a locality would think of inviting their ire. They play a “key” role in crisis situations and have perfected the art of discretionary distribution from exclusive “reserves”.
Plumbers of a particular pocket borough know exactly which among the hundreds of pipeline finally distribute water to which household and exhibit with precision their skill of “digging” deep into hapless pockets to canalize this scarce resource through well greased affluent pipelines. The quantum of flow and duration is directly proportional to the quantity of “grease”. And during the rainy season their expertise has to be sought at regular intervals to clear “blocked pipelines”. And in the entire cycle the inflow to their individual furrow is perpetual and recurring – never clogged.
