Contaminated Water Supplied to Residents of AP’s Kurnool City

Due to the negligence of the officials charged with maintaining sanitation and cleanliness, residents of Kurnool district are now receiving sewage-contaminated water in their water supply.

According to reports, the city is mired with overflowing sewage water which are inundating the roads, a phenomenon which is mostly associated with the monsoon. Meanwhile, the leakage of sewage pipes into the water supply pipes has compounded the problem as this is now contaminating the drinking water of the residents which are facing several health problems due to this.

In Nandyal, there are over 35,000 water connections and almost a third have so far been delivering contaminated water. Nearly, five lakh people residing in roughly 50 colonies are being supplied with this polluted water. Whereas, in Adoni, nearly 25,000 taps are suppling water to 3.5 lakh people.

However the people living in colonies situated on the outskirts of the town are the worst-hit as the officials have failed to ensure proper filtration of water. The reports confirm that the areas which source their water from old Ranjala Lake receive polluted water all throughout the year.

In Yemmiganur area of Kurnool, the problem of polluted water has become more pronounced. Over 20,000 pipes supply drinking water to some 2.5 lakh people. Residents of Kranthi Nagar, Indira Nagar, Sanjeevaiah Nagar, Somappa Nagar, NTR Colony and Kabela areas are receiving only polluted water through their municipal connections.

In 18 of the total 25 wards in Dhone Municipality, the problem of water pollution has also become pronounced. Similarly, the newly-upgraded municipalities like Atmakur, Gudur, Nandikotkur, Allagadda, Banaganapalli towns are also facing similar situation. Municipal taps here too have been supplying dirty water this season.

“My family has a municipal tap connection, but contaminated water flows through it. So, we are just using the water only for cleaning and having bath,” J Veeresh of Yemmiganur town, told local media. He added that the majority are buying mineral water for drinking.

B Ramakrishna Naidu, resident of Gandhi Nagar in Adoni town, said that the municipal officials did not pay any heed to their problem even after they complained repeatedly about contaminated water. Another resident of Syamkaluva area in Nandyal town, D Adam, said that they were receiving unfiltered water through municipal taps for decades. “Our colony roads and drains turn into water ponds every rainy season as roads are in bad condition. Dirty water seeps into the drinking water pipes,” he said.

Kurnool has been facing drinking water scarcity for quite some time now. Long dry spell and inadequate rainfall in the last monsoon have also resulted in depletion of groundwater. The riverbeds of Tungabhadra, Kundu and Handri have already dried up and in many areas, people are digging up ‘chalimalu’ (water pits) in search of water. Despite assurances from Deputy CM K.E. Krishnamurthy, back in April safe drinking water is still a luxury for people living in Yemmiganur, Alur and Adoni.