SHILLONG: Assembly Speaker A.T. Mondal on Wednesday directed Urban and Municipal Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh to ensure that clean drinking water is supplied to Tura residents as it concerns the health of the people.
The Speaker had to intervene after John Leslee Sangma (Independent) from South Tura expressed unhappiness with the minister’s reply in the Assembly regarding the untreated water storage sump at Edenbari in Tura.
The minister had said that during water crisis, two tankers purchased in 2013 and available with the Tura Municipal Board are engaged to supply drinking water to people of Tura at the rate of Rs 1500 per trip.
The quantum of water supplied by the tankers is around 90,00,000 liters and the revenue generated is Rs 22,49,600, she said.
However, raising a supplementary question, Sangma alleged that the PHE and the Tura Municipal Board have been supplying untreated water taken from Edenbari sump for the last 3 years though the Board had collected Rs 22 lakh till date.
Sangma wanted to know from the minister whether untreated water was being supplied to Tura residents from Edenbari water storage sump.
Stating that the minister was dodging his question, the legislator substantiated his claim that Edenbari sump was untreated, by producing a copy of the government document in this regard in the House.
Quoting the document, Sangma said water is pumped up by PHE to Tura Water treatment plant located 6.5 km away from the pumping station at Edenbari.
