HC instructs govt to address water woes

SHILLONG, June 1: The High Court of Meghalaya on Thursday directed the state government to respond to the problem of water supply in the East Khasi Hills region, particularly in the capital city.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by Thomas Passah complaining of mismanagement in the matter of supply of water in East Khasi Hills, particularly in Shillong.
According to the petitioner, despite schemes like the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) and the Meghalaya Water Harvesting Mission and the well-known fact that this region is one of the wettest places in the world, there is no reason for citizens to be deprived or water or any kind of scarcity of water in this area. “Of late, the citizens’ needs pertaining to electricity and water have not been met by the state,” the court said.
The court said that though, ordinarily, it would be averse to get into such matters, yet, when in this day and age citizens complain of lack of basic amenities like electricity and water, it calls for an explanation.
“The state will respond by indicating the immediate measures taken to alleviate the problems faced by the citizens and medium-term and long-term plans to augment the availability of water, including at Umiam and Mawphlang,” the court said while directing the state to file a preliminary report in such regard when the matter is heard after a week.