Residents of Barisal city are facing an acute water crisis, though two new water treatment plants have been set up at great expense, but are yet to be functional.
The rough-and-tumble between Barisal City Corporation and West Zone Power Distribution Company over the payment of arrear dues and future bills is responsible for the stagnant situation.
Manirul Alam Swapan, executive engineer of the BCC water supply department, said over 500,000 city dwellers need 45 million liters of water a day, but at present BCC has the maximum capacity to produce 25.5m liters and supply 15m liters.
Currently, the BCC can supply one-third of the water needed by Barisal city residents.
“The city corporation will be capable of meeting the full water demand of the residents after the two water treatment plants start operations, the executive engineer said.
Luthfar Rahman, sub-assistant engineer of the Public Health Department (PHED) Barisal regional office, said about 95% of the construction work of the two SWTP and transmission lines at the Beltala and Rupatali areas of the city, with the total capacity of supplying 32 million liters of water per day from Kitankhola River, has been completed.
SM Shohidul Alam, executive engineer of the PHED office at Barisal, said they had set a target to begin supplying water from the new plants, constructed at a cost of Tk50 cores, sometime within June and August 2015.
But they delayed starting operations as the electric line is yet to be connected, the official added.
“An electricity bill of Tk22 core is due against the BCC, and we asked to pay the arrears in installments, but they refused,” said Tarikul Islam and Amzad Hossain, executive engineers of division 1 and 2 under the West Zone Power Distribution Company Barisal office.
Thus, without clearing dues, a new electricity connection for the BCC’s water treatment plants could not be given as per the rules, they said.
BCC mayor Ahsan Habib Kamal said they had already paid a good portion of the arrears.
He, however, said the BCC is also trying to clear the dues.
Supplying electricity to the water treatment plant is part of fulfilling a basic civic right and that should not be hampered by any cause, said the mayor.
