Jagran correspondent, Khoda. On one hand, the people of Khoda are troubled due to non-availability of Ganga water supply, while on the other hand, the water mafia is reaping the benefits. Apart from tankers and plants, big tube wells have been installed here to sell water. Water is being sold through lines from these tube wells to homes. In lieu of this, four to five thousand rupees are being collected from people every month.
A local resident of Khoda, on the condition of anonymity, said that in his neighborhood a full tube well has been installed instead of a submersible one. Through this tube well, water reaches hundreds of houses here every day. Meters have also been installed to measure how much water is being consumed in each house.
Every month, recovery is made for providing water from each house on the basis of meter. Every family has to pay about four to five thousand rupees every month. If people protest against taking more money then they stop giving water. This increases the problem further.
This work of selling water in Khoda is not happening at any one place, but by selling water on a large scale in hundreds of numbers, the mafia is emptying the womb of the earth. If it is not stopped in time, the problem will increase further in future.
The people of Khoda say that neither the municipality is paying attention to this nor the district administration is taking any action. All those responsible have maintained silence. Despite the knowledge of the authorities, this illegal business of selling water is flourishing.
Area has been divided for selling water
The mafia has divided the area to sell water in Khoda. Who will supply water to which part of the sector has been decided at its own level. If someone else tries to sell water, there is a fight among themselves. People told that water mafias keep fighting among themselves every day.
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Here one has to survive by purchasing water for every small work. For drinking, water has to be purchased from plants and for important purposes, it has to be purchased from tankers.
-Deepa Bisht Mavdi, local resident
Whenever the district administration makes a plan for the supply of Ganga water in Khoda, it remains limited to papers only. Right now there is no hope of getting Ganga water.
-Meena Bansal, local resident
There is no guarantee whether the tankers sent by the municipality will provide water or not. That is why water has to be purchased and stored in advance.
-Nawab Khan, local resident
Here water has to be bought daily. Even if there is no such day when water does not have to be bought. Due to this, a large part of the salary every month is spent on water.
-Megh Singh, local resident