From Saurav Borah
TURA: Pushing almost five decades now ever since Meghalaya attained statehood, this “nerve centre” of Garo Hills, also the second largest “city” of the state, has progressed at snail’s pace, a distant “second” after capital Shillong.
Many chief ministers, parliamentarians, ministers, legislators from the community have represented the state, its constituencies and its people. Yet, the headquarters of the second-most populous district in Meghalaya, West Garo Hills, is grappling with issues which could have been addressed long time back had “good will” prevailed.
Let alone the absence of urban development or lack of progress in sectors such as power, transport, healthcare, education and tourism, Tura has far too long struggled to find a sustainable solution to one of the most basic problems – drinking water.
Sample this: People walking several hundred metres from afternoon till night to collect drinking water from a “supply point” on PA Sangma Road in the heart of the city has become a common drill.
The supply point near Dakopgre, where former South Tura legislator and NPP candidate for Tura Lok Sabha seat, Agatha Sangma resides, is just one among many others in town.
Not just pots but plastic cans of various shapes, tins, bottles and buckets, are kept in opposite lines to the water source as men, women and even children take turns to collect water supplied by the municipal board.
“This is our daily routine as we have not been privileged enough to get drinking water where we stay. The municipal board supplies water from 2.30pm to about 8.30pm and it is during this period that people come from near and far to collect drinking water,” said a CRPF jawan, after filling a couple of cans.
The river Ganol happens to be the primary source of water in Tura, and come the dry season every year, there is invariably a crisis with residents bearing the brunt.
Boring of land for ground water is not permitted without environment clearance, locals say, even as the practice, if allowed, may be cumbersome given the undulating topography.
Tura has a population of about 1.20lakh in the municipal area and requires about 20 million litres of water a day.
Ahead of the 2014 parliamentary elections, the public health engineering (PHE) department had quoted a shortage of about 6lakh gallons per day. This shortfall might have only compounded over five years.
Headthiar R Marak, a 35-year-old man who owns a confectionary shop, rues, “Drinking water has been an age-old problem for Tura. Many households have to buy water from the municipal board or private suppliers every day.”
“Not just water, there are other problems such as power shortage, lack of employment avenues, which the elected representatives of the past haven’t pursued aggressively,” he adds.
The PHE department and Garo Hills Autonomous District Council oversee supply and distribution of water in Tura.
West Garo Hills deputy commissioner, Ram Singh said he had recently asked the authorities to constitute teams to monitor the situation and ensure that leakages from the water pipes were plugged to prevent wastage.
“But yes, there is a crisis of water in the dry season, which we are trying to address. There has been scanty rain this season leading to depletion of the water level in the catchment areas of the river. We are appealing people living near these areas to abstain from from taking up commercial plantations, which may lead to depletion of the water level,” Singh said.
“Besides, we are replacing old pipelines. As it is, the area development committees have been cautious in regard to wastage of water,” the DC added.
Now, the foundation for new feeder mains under Tura Phase I and II Water Supply Scheme was laid last month, which is expected to bail the city out of this long-drawn-out crisis.
As of now, the authorities say it would take a year for the project to get going. Reportedly, the facility aims to provide about 23 million litres of water per day and cater to over 35,000 households in the city.
All said and done, there is a sense of frustration among residents as another election nears.
“Before every election, our leaders promise much to deliver but fail to live up to their commitment after they get elected. Not just water, there is a serious power problem as well. Besides, traffic congestion in some localities is another problem to cope with. The late PA Sangma had promised to build a flyover across the busy Ringrey area, but that has remained a distant dream,” a resident of Chitoktak, rued.
Worse still, progress eludes the city despite fund allocation by the Centre.
“The Centre had in the year 2016 allotted approximately Rs 100 crore (the highest one-time allotment so far) to the district council, but the funds have not been utilised properly. In fact, I would say, a portion of it has been siphoned off … There is corruption and loot. So how can Tura develop? Then again, the rich are buying property in Shillong, Guwahati and other places but Tura,” he alleged.
Tura Lok Sabha seat goes to the polls on April 11.
Given the unfinished business and work to be done, the moot question remains…will Tura vote for a change?
“About time we needed a change for the betterment of Garo Hills,” said a working woman, wishing anonymity and remaining ambiguous on her choice of candidate or party.