Water Crisis In Sylhet City
Solution not in sight as project shows no progress in 4 years
One of the four overhead water tanks that have remained inoperative in Sylhey city for years.Photo: STAR
An end to water crisis in Sylhet City Corporation (SCC) areas seems faraway as little progress has been made four years after taking of a project to solve the crisis. The demand of water has risen manifold with formation of the city corporation that has got a larger area and population but the authorities can meet highest 30 to 40 per cent of the requirement -- 5 crore litre water daily, SCC Secretary Harun Ur Rashid Molla said. Four overhead tanks have remained virtually inoperative due to technical problems for years and it has worsened the situation, SCC Executive Engineer (Water) Syed Hossain Zamal said. Work for sinking four deep tube wells under a new project has started on an emergency basis, but it will take six months to finish the task, he said. Authorities appointed the project director for a project styled “Water supply, sanitation and drainage project for Sylhet and Barisal city corporation areas” last year and he has been doing the job as an additional charge with office at Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE) in the capital. The Tk 40 crore project includes work for land acquire and development, test tube well installation, replacement of production tube well, pump house construction, renovation of existing supply lines etc. Of the amount, Tk 24 crore is supposed to be spent for Sylhet. But the price of construction materials has increased and with passage of time, the cost will get further escalation, an official said. The project work is being done from Dhaka since the very beginning and progress is almost nothing, said an SCC official, adding that DPHE has been given the charge to implement the project whereas there are city corporation authorities to do the job. Besides, authorities are yet to appoint any project consultant. The project was taken up in 2005 but no fund was sanctioned in the following fiscal year (FY) 2006-07. Only Tk one crore had been given in 2007-2008 FY. Of the amount, only Tk 20 lakh was given for Sylhet part of the project. Now city dwellers are getting water through 18 old pumps. The age-old water process plant at Topkhana area is being used for processing water collected from Surma River but it can meet the need for a small area. There are also long standing problems like pilferage, dilapidated condition of the supply lines, and illegal drawing extraction of water and corruption of the concerned staff.
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