Barisal city folk have been facing an acute drinking water crisis and the problem has gotten worse because the groundwater level in the city has fallen.
Mainul Islam, executive engineer of the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), Barisal office, said the ground water level in greater Barisal city has dropped to 40 feet from 25 feet. Water pumps and tube wells can no longer draw water from underground.
In the last three or four years, ground water levels fall at least 15 feet every summer. People are not able to pump water since the pipes do not go down the needed 40 feet or more. In the monsoon season the water level once again goes up to the required level, Mainul Islam said.
Due to excessive drawing of groundwater and climate change, the water level may have dropped so drastically, the PHED official assumed.
Humayun Kabir, executive engineer of water supply, said Barisal City Corporation (BCC) is yet to take charge of two surface water treatment plants (SWTP) from PHED in Rapatali and Beltala areas due to some technical problems.
When the two surface water treatment plants start operating, the drinking water problem may be solved, he hoped.
About six lakh residents in thirty wards of BCC have an average demand of 5.6 crore liters of water per day. At present BCC can only supply 2.9 crore liters, said Khairul Islam, chief executive officer (CEO) of BCC.
Many BCC residents, especially in the slums are now facing an acute crisis of drinking water. Most city folk are unable to draw drinking water using hand pump tube wells. They are collecting drinking water directly from pump houses or electric motor driven deep tube wells, said Abdullah, a resident of Kawnia in the city.
Shathi, a Barisal Stadium slum area resident, said she has been collecting drinking water from a private deep tube well half a kilometer away from her house.
Hasina Begum of the Palashpur slum says she has never seen such an acute crisis of drinking water.
Hayatuni Begum of BCC ward 2, said she is forced to spend a lot of time bringing drinking water from afar.
“To meet the demand for drinking water, we have temporarily arranged to supply drinking water to slum areas by water tankers,” said Khairul Islam, CEO of BCC.